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Story: Coins and banknotes

Operation Overlander

Video file

In 1963 the government announced that New Zealand would switch to decimal currency on 10 July 1967. Once the denominations and designs were decided, the production process began, culminating in the delivery of the new currency to banks throughout New Zealand, which disbursed the coins and banknotes to customers. Dubbed 'Operation Overlander', this was carried out between April and June 1967. The National Film Unit produced a playful film about the delivery, complete with a jaunty soundtrack. This shows some of the groups involved in the delivery and outlines the huge volume of new currency offloaded to banks.

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Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

Reference: Pictorial Parade 194. National Film Unit, 1967

Permission of Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga must be obtained before any re-use of this material.

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How to cite this page

Kerryn Pollock, Coins and banknotes – Decimal currency, 1960s to 2000s, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/video/36398/operation-overlander (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Kerryn Pollock, published 5 June 2012.