50 Đồng

This note belongs to the 1985 currency reform series, through which Vietnam redenominated at a rate of 10 old đồng to 1 new — the country's second such redenomination since reunification. The reform was driven by severe inflation and a failing command economy, conditions that worsened considerably before the Đổi Mới liberalization began in 1986.

A print run of just over twelve million is modest for a circulating denomination and likely reflects the chaotic supply conditions of the period rather than any deliberate policy of scarcity. Paper quality on this series is notoriously inconsistent.