20 Centavos – Puerto Rico

In 1895, Puerto Rico operated under a complex and strained monetary system as a colony of Spain. The official currency was the Spanish peso, divided into 100 centavos, and issued by the Banco Español de Puerto Rico. However, the island's economy suffered from a severe scarcity of hard currency, a problem exacerbated by Spain's own frequent financial crises and the high costs of colonial administration. This scarcity stifled local commerce and created a reliance on credit and barter in many sectors, particularly among rural agricultural workers.

The currency landscape was further complicated by the widespread circulation of foreign coins, a common practice in Caribbean ports. American gold dollars, British sovereigns, French francs, and Mexican pesos all circulated alongside the official Spanish coinage, their value determined by fluctuating exchange rates and their metallic content. This multiplicity of currencies created confusion in everyday transactions and made the economy vulnerable to external monetary shocks. Furthermore, the limited issuance of banknotes by the Banco Español de Puerto Rico was often insufficient to meet the needs of the growing sugar and coffee export economies.

This unstable financial environment reflected Puerto Rico's broader colonial predicament. The currency scarcity hindered economic development and fueled discontent among local criollo elites and businessmen who sought more autonomy and economic modernization. The system was inherently fragile, propped up by Spanish authority but increasingly out of step with the island's commercial realities. Within three years, the entire colonial framework would be shattered by the Spanish-American War, after which Puerto Rico would transition to the United States dollar, abruptly ending the era of Spanish monetary control and its attendant problems.