40 Centavos

The Banco Nacional de Bolivia was chartered in 1871 under a concession granted to Chilean and Bolivian commercial interests — one of several private banks that briefly held note-issuing authority before Bolivia's troubled path toward a central bank. The 40 centavos denomination is an odd fractional value, almost certainly designed to facilitate small-denomination commerce in a country where coin shortages were chronic and silver circulation unreliable despite Bolivia's own mining wealth.

American Bank Note Company printed this during a particularly active period of Latin American commissions. The S-prefix Pick reference confirms private bank status rather than a government treasury issue.