Lay three Hungarian banknotes from 1946 side by side and you might think you are looking at the same note three times. Same date, similar portraits, and sometimes even the same number printed on the front. Yet one is worth a billion pengő, the next a quadrillion, and the third a hundred quintillion. Welcome to the most confusing and most collectable corner of paper money: the pengő, milpengő and B.-pengő notes of Hungary's 1946 hyperinflation.
We have already told the story of Hungary's hyperinflation. This guide is different: it is a practical, note-by-note map for collectors who want to understand exactly what they are holding, and how to build the series.
Why one currency needed three names
By spring 1946 prices in Hungary were rising so fast that, at one stage, they doubled roughly every 15 hours. Printing ever-longer strings of zeros was impractical, so the Hungarian National Bank (Magyar Nemzeti Bank) introduced shorthand units on the notes themselves:
- Pengő – the original unit, introduced in 1927.
- Milpengő – one million pengő (106).
- B.-pengő (billió pengő) – one trillion pengő in English terms (1012), from the Hungarian long-scale word billió.
The trick allowed the bank to cut the zeros and reuse existing designs, changing mainly the colour and the name of the unit. That is exactly why the series can look so alike today.
Stage one: the big pengő notes (1945 – May 1946)
The plain pengő notes climbed from hundreds to hundreds of thousands during 1945, then into the millions. The 100,000 pengő (P-121a) appeared in December 1945, followed in 1946 by the 100 Millió Pengő (P-124) and, in May 1946, the last ordinary denomination: the 1 Milliárd Pengő (P-125), one billion pengő. It carries an Extreme Index of 8.8 / 10, because it was effectively worthless within months of issue.
Stage two: the milpengő series (27 May – 27 June 1946)
Within one month the bank released six milpengő notes, one roughly every few days: 10,000 (P-126), 100,000 (P-127), 1 million (P-128), 10 million (P-129), 100 million (P-130) and 1 milliárd milpengő (P-131). The first, the 10,000 milpengő, was introduced on 27 May 1946.
Do the maths and the top note, the 1 Milliárd Milpengő (P-131), equals 1,000,000,000,000,000 pengő: one quadrillion. Collectors who want the full run can start with our Milpengő 1946 Hyperinflation Bundle, or browse every note in the Milpengő collection.
Stage three: the B.-pengő series (1 – 11 July 1946)
The milpengő lasted barely a month. In July the B.-pengő took over, and the issues came even faster: 10,000 (P-132), 100,000 (P-133), 1 million (P-134), 10 million (P-135) and finally 100 million B.-pengő (P-136), all within eleven days.
The 100 Millió B.-Pengő (P-136) is the headline note of the whole era. Issued on 11 July 1946, it equals 100,000,000,000,000,000,000 pengő (1020, or 100 quintillion), the highest denomination banknote ever to circulate. It measures 159 × 79 mm, shows a portrait of a young woman on the front and the Hungarian Parliament on the back, and was demonetised on 31 July 1946, less than three weeks later. Its Extreme Index of 9.8 / 10 is among the highest in our catalogue.
A 1 milliárd B.-pengő note (P-137), worth one sextillion pengő, was printed but never released. If you want every circulating note, our B.-Pengő 1946 Complete Hyperinflation Bundle brings all five together, and the B.-Pengő collection lists single notes and graded examples.
The side story: the adópengő
Running in parallel was the adópengő, or "tax pengő", introduced on 1 January 1946 as an indexed unit of account. Tax notes were issued from late May and became legal tender on 9 July 1946. By 31 July a single adópengő was worth 2 sextillion pengő. A small Adópengő Set is the natural companion to any pengő collection.
How to tell the series apart
- Read the unit word, not the number. Milpengő and B.-pengő both run from 10,000 to 1 milliárd, so the figure alone will not tell you which series you hold.
- Check the Pick number. Pengő notes run to P-125, milpengő are P-126 to P-131, and B.-pengő are P-132 to P-136.
- Compare colours. Because designs were reused, colour is often the quickest visual clue between twin designs.
- Mind the condition. Many of these notes survive in large numbers, so crisp uncirculated examples and graded notes are where value and scarcity separate.
Key facts
- 1 milpengő = 1,000,000 pengő; 1 B.-pengő = 1,000,000,000,000 pengő.
- Milpengő notes issued: 27 May – 27 June 1946 (P-126 to P-131).
- B.-pengő notes issued: 1 – 11 July 1946 (P-132 to P-136).
- Highest circulated note: 100 Millió B.-Pengő, 1020 pengő, demonetised 31 July 1946.
- Prices doubled roughly every 15 hours at the peak.
- The forint replaced the pengő on 1 August 1946 at 400 octillion (4 × 1029) pengő to 1 forint.
FAQ
Are milpengő and B.-pengő notes rare?
Most circulated examples are affordable because huge quantities were printed. Top-grade uncirculated notes, complete sets and certified examples are much harder to find.
What is the highest-denomination banknote ever issued?
Hungary's 100 Millió B.-Pengő of 1946 (P-136), worth 100 quintillion pengő, is the highest denomination ever put into circulation.
How much was a 100 Millió B.-Pengő worth when issued?
Very little: on issue it was worth only around 20 US cents, and within weeks practically nothing.
Start your 1946 series
Whether you want a single record-breaker or the complete journey from pengő to B.-pengő, you can explore every note from this era in our Hyperinflationary Banknotes collection. Pick a note, check its Extreme Index, and hold a piece of the most extreme monetary collapse in history.