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| 5 Latvian lati |
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| 5 Latvian Lats |
Obverse: Bridge accross the River Guaja. Across the top of the banknote, there is the two inscription LATVIJAS VALSTS KASES MAINAS ZĪME (Latvian Government Exchange Notes). The banknote face value is printed in words ("PIECI LATI" - Five Lats) and there is the numerical indication of the denomination of the banknote.
Reverse: The Great Coat of Arms of the Republic of Latvia.
Printed by Valsts Papiru Spiestuve un Naudas, Riga Latvia.
The Soviet Army occupied Riga on June 17, 1940, and thus took control of the entire Republic of Latvia. Immediately all bank and saving account deposits were frozen, and between 21 and 30 June every depositor was allowed to withdraw from his account not more than 50 Lats. Sometime later depositors were allowed to withdraw 100 Lats per month, but beginning the November 1940, instead of the100 Lats - 100 soviet Rubles were paid out.
Already at the beginning of the Soviet occupation rumors were spreading that the Latvian Lat might abolished, and people started to hoard silver coins. Shopkeepers not rarely refused to change paper money, allegedly due to lack of change. At that time some 32 million Lats containing 134 tons of pure silver was withdrawn from circulation by the people and was hidden. From November 25, 1940, the Soviet Ruble was introduced as a legal tender. The exchange rate was 1 Lat = 1 Soviet Ruble, both being legal means of payments. On August 2, 1940, an order was issued that forbade all trading of stocks and bonds. All Government bonds were to be surrendered to the Bank of Latvia without reimbursement (some 900 million Lats). In July 1940 all jewelry stores were ordered to render their stock of valuables to the Bank of Latvia, where they were confiscated.
On 25 March 1941 a secret order was issued to all financial institutions that out of private deposits no more than 1000 Rubles may be paid out to the owner, whereby the entire amount above was confiscated by the state. Also on 25 March 1941 small, inconspicuous notices appeared in public newspapers that by the order of the Latvian Socialist Republic, Council of the People Commissars and the Central Committee of the Communist Party - the monetary system of Lat/ Santim was abolished as of the same date, and shall not be accepted any longer for payment. In the official international bank bulletin published in Vienna, a note appeared to the effect that by order of the National Bank of the USSR, it would exchange all banknotes and coins of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania until 25 March 1941. After 25 March 1941 these banknotes became worthless. Just before that the purchasing power of the Soviet Ruble approximately equaled that of 10 Latvian Santimi in 1939.