5.000 Kronen / Korun

The Národní Banka pro Čechy a Moravu — the National Bank for Bohemia and Moravia — was not an independent institution in any meaningful sense. It was established in 1939 following the German occupation and functioned under Reich supervision, tasked with managing a currency deliberately decoupled from the Reichsmark to extract economic value from the Protectorate while maintaining the appearance of local monetary administration.

This 5,000 Koruna note is among the highest denominations the bank issued, reflecting inflationary pressure that built steadily through the occupation years. The bilingual German-Czech titling on the series was itself a political calculation — German first, always.