[5] Dram or Takvorin coinage would periodically continue to be produced for some time until the loss of Armenia's independence.

On 21 September 1991, a national referendum proclaimed Armenia as a republic independent from the Soviet Union.

In the immediate aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union attempts were made to maintain a common currency (the Russian rouble) among CIS states.

However it soon became clear that maintaining a currency union in the unstable political and economical circumstances of the post-Soviet states would be very difficult.

The Rouble Zone effectively collapsed with the unilateral 1993 Russian monetary reform process.

As a result, the remaining CIS participants – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Moldova, Armenia and Georgia – were 'pushed out' and forced to introduce separate currencies.

Until the official endorsement of the sign a number of artists and businessmen developed and offered various shapes for it.

The Central Bank has also issued a great number of commemorative coins intended for sale to collectors.