10 Maloti

Lesotho's first independent currency series launched in 1980, replacing the South African rand at par — a deliberate assertion of economic distance from Pretoria at a time when the kingdom was entirely surrounded by apartheid South Africa and heavily dependent on it. The Maloti had no meaningful exchange risk at introduction, but the political symbolism of the move was considerable for a country with essentially no monetary infrastructure of its own.

Bradbury Wilkinson printed the series out of New Malden until the firm was absorbed by De La Rue in 1990. The P#6 carries two signature combinations, suggesting at minimum two distinct issue runs across its print life.