During the first half of the twentieth century, one of the most emblematic designs in Chilean numismatics became firmly established: the condor perched on rocks, created by the French engraver Oscar Roty. From the beginning of the century until the 1940s, this motif dominated the front side of national coins. At the same time, the Chilean peso underwent gradual changes: coins became progressively smaller, and the purity of the silver used in their minting also declined. Silver was finally abandoned in 1933, when the first nickel pesos began to be issued.

Centavo coins, which until then had also been made of silver, began to be struck in nickel and later in less valuable metals such as bronze, copper and even aluminium. These changes were linked to the abandonment of the gold standard and to the adoption of a fiat currency system in 1925, in which the value of money no longer depended on the metal it contained, but on public confidence backed by the state.

Once coins no longer matched the value of the metal they contained, the Chilean state was able to reduce production costs by using cheaper, though equally durable, materials, while also introducing new designs and motifs into circulation.

That same year, 1925, the creation of the Central Bank of Chile brought an end to the issue of banknotes by private banks. From then on, paper money was issued exclusively as national banknotes, printed at the Casa de Moneda, and any other issues ceased to be legal tender. These banknotes were characterised by portraits of prominent figures in Chilean history, including the independence leader Bernardo O’Higgins, the conquistador Pedro de Valdivia, the naval hero Arturo Prat, the politician Manuel Antonio Tocornal, and several presidents of the Republic, such as Manuel Bulnes, Aníbal Pinto, Manuel Blanco Encalada, Manuel Montt, José Manuel Balmaceda and Arturo Alessandri.