The intent of the overprints was to easily distinguish United States dollars captured by the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces in the event of an invasion of Hawaii and render the notes worthless.

Although a sizeable number of the notes were recalled and destroyed after the end of World War II, many escaped destruction and exist as collectibles of numismatic interest in the present day.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, by the Empire of Japan, U.S. military officials surmised that in the event of an invasion of Hawaii, the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces would have access to a considerable amount of United States dollars which could be seized from financial institutions or private individuals.

The purpose was that should there have been an Imperial Japanese invasion of the islands, the US government could immediately declare any Hawaii-printed notes worthless, due to their easy identification.

To ensure complete destruction, a fine mesh was placed on the top of the chimneys to catch and recirculate unburnt scraps of currency escaping the fire.