Kong Token

Kong Tokens are special items that appear exclusively in Donkey Kong Land. They commonly appear in most levels, and have a picture of Donkey Kong on one side of them, and Diddy Kong on the other.

Like Banana Bunch Coins from Donkey Kong Land 2, these coins are hidden throughout each level. Sometimes, they are found in tough-to-reach spots, or even in hidden areas. Several Kong Tokens can also be found often in some Bonus Levels of the game. After collecting some of these common items, the Kongs can enter certain Bonus Levels, where they will see a barrel quickly moving across the screen, as well as a button nearby. If they have saved up some of their Kong Tokens, they may hit the button to shoot one of the coins out of the rotating barrel. The coin will then quickly plummet across the area at a fast speed. However, if it is caught by Donkey Kong or Diddy Kong, they will be awarded with an extra life. Once the Kongs are out of tokens, though, the barrel will no longer shoot out coins. Although the game keeps track of how many Kong Tokens the player has collected, the number of coins will drop to zero after the game is turned off.

Donkey Kong Land bio
"The big coins you will find in some stages are Kong Tokens. In the Bonus Levels, you can cash in some tokens for a chance to win extra lives."