Yuan is the money of the People's Republic of China. Chinese currency

The Chinese yuan is the official currency of the People's Republic of China (abbreviated as China or PRC). The word “yuan” translated into Russian means “circle” or “round coin”.

“Yuan” is the name of the PRC currency used exclusively abroad. The internal name of the currency is renminbi or, as is customary in Latin writing, Renminbi, which translated into Russian means “people's money”.

Briefly about the formation of the Chinese yuan

CNY

Modern banknotes began their history in China in 1948. It was then that the People's Bank of China was created, which received the exclusive right to issue banknotes in the country. In 1948, the People's Bank of China issued the first "people's money" and began reform to move to a single currency. The exchange rate for old banknotes was 3 million for 1 new yuan. The reform to remove old banknotes from circulation was not carried out at once, but as all provinces of the country united. Finally, local banknotes were replaced by a single currency of the state by 1952, and in Tibet - by 1959.

So far, the single Chinese currency, the yuan, is not freely convertible, since with the active development of the Chinese economy, the banking sector is regulated by the state, and the yuan exchange rate remains pegged to the US dollar. Until 1974, the official exchange rate of the yuan was set by the People's Bank of China in relation to the British pound sterling and the Hong Kong dollar, and later – to the US dollar and a basket of world currencies. Since 1994, the yuan has been fixed at 8.27 yuan per dollar for a long time, and since the summer of 2011 the official rate has been 6.46 yuan per dollar. As of June 22, 2018, the Central Bank of China fixed the yuan to dollar exchange rate at 6.48 yuan per dollar.

Without moving to the free convertibility of the yuan, China is gradually increasing the importance of its national currency in the international economy. Thus, in 2010, a number of countries pegged their currencies to the yuan (South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand).

In 2016, the International Monetary Fund included the Chinese Yuan in the Special Drawing Rights (SDR) basket, recognizing it as "an important milestone in the integration of the Chinese economy into the global financial system." The yuan became the third-largest currency in the IMF basket (10.92%), behind only the dollar (41.73%) and the euro (30.93%), but ahead of the Japanese yen (8.33%) and the pound sterling (8. 09%). Today the yuan is not one of the reserve currencies.

In Russia, interest in the Chinese currency has increased significantly in recent years, which is caused by an increase in trade turnover between the countries and the growth of tourist flows of the population of both countries. The exchange of cash yuan is not widespread in Russia. They work most actively with the yuan in Moscow and the regions of the Russian Far East, which is associated with Chinese imports and tourism. The yuan is rarely used as household deposits.

Chinese currency code and symbol

This is how the code and symbol of the Chinese currency are described in the All-Russian Currency Classifier (OCC), which was developed on the basis of the international standard ISO 4217 by the All-Russian Research Institute of Classification, Terminology and Information on Standardization and Quality of the State Standard of Russia and the Central Bank of the Russian Federation:

• Letter (Bank) code of the PRC currency – CNY.
• Digital currency code – 156 .
• The name of the currency of China is the yuan (Yuan)
• Chinese currency symbol - ￥

Current banknotes and coins of China

The official currency of the People's Republic of China is the yuan. One yuan is equal to 10 jiao or 100 fen.

Currently, the following types of banknotes and coins are in cash circulation in the PRC:

• Banknotes of the fourth series, which were introduced from 1987 to 1997. The bills are dated 1980, 1990 and 1996. The fourth series is gradually being withdrawn from circulation, but is still approved for use. Among the fourth series there is a rare 2 yuan banknote.
• Banknotes of the fifth series of 1999-2005 were issued in denominations of 100, 50, 20, 10, 5, and 1 yuan, as well as 5, 2 and 1 jiao.
• Commemorative banknote issued in 2000 – 100 yuan.
• 2015 100 yuan banknote (updated banknote from the fifth series)
• Coins - 1 yuan, 1 and 5 zhao, 5, 2 and 1 fen.
  Since the fourth series is gradually being withdrawn from circulation, I don’t see any point in providing photos of these banknotes, with the possible exception of the 2 Chinese yuan banknote. There is no such bill in the fifth series of banknotes. In addition, the 2 Chinese yuan bill is rare and looks like this:

  
  2 yuan note

  
  Description of the 2 Chinese Yuan banknote:
  • Banknote size 2,145 x 63 mm.
  • The main color is green.
  • The front side drawing is of two girls, on the left is a girl of the people, and on the right is a Uyghur girl
  • Year of manufacture - 1990.

  Banknotes of the People's Republic of China of the fifth series

  China's cash circulation mainly contains banknotes of this series of yuan.

  The features of the fifth series yuan banknotes are as follows:

  • On the front side of paper banknotes of all denominations of the fifth series of 1999-2005 and 2015 there is a portrait of Mao Zedong, a Chinese statesman and politician, the main theoretician of Maoism, the 1st Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, flowers and the national emblem of China (on the left). The exception is the anniversary banknote issued in 2000.

    Without changing the basic elements of the appearance of 100 yuan, the People's Bank of China in 2015 released an updated banknote, on the front of which the number 100 is painted in gold. This banknote is rarely seen in circulation.

  • Each denomination of the banknote has its own type of color that is not repeated on other banknotes.
  • The reverse side of the banknotes depicts landscapes of the People's Republic of China. On the left is the national emblem of China.

  Photos of the current banknotes (Chinese yuan) of the People's Bank of China, fifth series, 1999-2005, 2015, look like this:
  
  
  
  Brief description of the fifth series of Chinese Yuan notes from 1999-2005 and later 100 yuan notes:
  

  
  

  Yuan	Years of manufacture	Banknote size	Banknote color and flower type	Description of Obverse.	Description of Reverse
  1 yuan		130 by 63 mm.	yellow-green color with an orchid design and watermark	On the right is Mao Zedong - Chinese statesman and politician, the main theorist of Maoism, 1st Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (1943 - 1976). On the left is the national emblem of China.	River landscape in the Changyang Gorge (according to some sources - Lake Xihu.
  5 yuan	Banknote from the fifth series of the Chinese Yuan 1999-2005	135 by 63 mm	purple with daffodil pattern and watermark	On the right is a portrait of Mao Zedong, a statesman and political figure, the main theoretician of Maoism. On the left is the national emblem of China.	Landscape of Mount Taishan.
  10 yuan	Banknote from the fifth series of the Chinese Yuan 1999-2005	140 by 70 mm	blue with rose design and watermark		Landscape of the Three Gorges Valley.
  20 yuan	Banknote from the fifth series of the Chinese Yuan 1999-2005	145 by 70 mm	brown with lotus pattern and watermark	On the right is a portrait of Mao Zedong. On the left is the national emblem of China.	Landscape of Guilin
  50 yuan	Banknote from the fifth series of the Chinese Yuan 1999-2005	150 by 70 mm	green with a chrysanthemum pattern and watermark	On the right is a portrait of Mao Zedong. On the left is the national emblem of China.	Potala Palace in Lhasa city in Tibet - royal palace and Buddhist temple complex
  100 yuan	Banknote from the fifth series of the Chinese Yuan 1999-2005	155 by 77 mm		On the right is a portrait of Mao Zedong. On the left is the national emblem of China.
  100 yuan (anniversary)	2000	166 x 80 mm	gold, red, russet and orange	A flying dragon is depicted in the center. The bill is made on a polymer base and is China's first polymer banknote. The banknote is protected by a watermark in the form of the number 2000, as well as a transparent window with a temple. There is no security thread. Its role is played by a silver hologram on the front side, on which you can see the number 2000, depicted in Chinese and Roman numerals	image of a modern building and national emblem
  100 yuan (applies to the fifth series with a higher degree of protection)	Banknote from the fifth series of the Chinese Yuan, sample 2015. Release date: November 12, 2015	155 by 77 mm	red with a plum blossom design and watermark	On the right is a portrait of Mao Zedong. On the left is the national emblem of China.	Great Hall of the People in Beijing
  100 yuan	2015 - Space Science and Technology - China - AU	156 by 77 mm	Blue, purple and green	Images of two satellites: Shenzhou-9 (manned spacecraft) at the moment of rendezvous and docking with Tiangong-1 (space station)	Images of a flying bird, airplanes and space objects.

  A photo of the current Chinese commemorative banknote (100 yuan) of the People's Bank of China issued in 2000 looks like this:

  
  100 yuan

  
  A photo of the current circulation banknote (100 yuan) dedicated to space science and technology - China - AU of the People's Bank of China from 2015 looks like this:

  
  100 yuan

  And the coins of the latest series of issue contain:

  • on the front side - the name of the bank and year of issue,
  • on the reverse side - on 1 yuan - the inscription RMB (three times; the coin is made of nickel coated with steel), on the 5 jiao - an image of a reed (made of copper coated with steel). The 1 jiao coin is smooth and made of aluminum alloy. Other denominations have not been issued since the end of the last century.

  
  Coins

  Russian banks are expanding opportunities for private clients by launching transactions for the purchase and sale of Chinese cash bills.
  So, for example, from June 20, 2018, PTB Bank launched operations for the purchase and sale of cash Chinese banknotes - yuan. Operations are carried out at the head office of the Bank, located at Ufa, Lenin St., 70.

Yuan- monetary unit of the People's Republic of China. The word is used exclusively outside of China; translated as “circle” (“round coin”).

In the Celestial Empire, the lexeme “Renminbi” appears, which should be literally understood as “people’s money”.

International designation - CNY.

The yuan symbol is a Latin letter Y with two slashes. The original name is Yen sign, code is U+00A5. There is a misconception that a letter with one stroke is used to denote the yuan, and a letter with two strokes for the yen.

All about the Chinese yuan currency: bills and coins

1 yuan = 10 jiao = 100 fen.

Fenny is about the same as a penny. This word is translated as “hundredth part”, “one tenth”, “divide”, “split”, “separate”, “discriminate”, “minute”, “point”.

Banknotes:

• 1, 2 (very rare), 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 yuan;
• 1, 2 and 5 jiao.

Coins:

• 1 yuan;
• 1 and 5 jiao (also colloquially called "mao");
• 1, 2 and 5 fen.

What do yuan look like?

Now in China, banknotes of the fifth series, printed after 1999, are considered the main ones.

On the front side (obverse) there is a portrait of Mao Zedong and flowers, on the other side there is a landscape.

• 1 yuan - 130×63 mm; olive green banknote; orchid and Xihu Lake printed;
• 5 yuan - 135x63 mm; purple bill; daffodil and Mount Taishan;
• 10 yuan - 140×70 mm; blue banknote; rose and 3 rapids of the Yangtze River;
• 20 yuan - 145×70 mm; banknote in brown tones; a lotus is printed, on the reverse side there is a landscape of the urban district of Guilin in southern China;
• 50 yuan – 150×70 mm; green banknote; chrysanthemum and Potala Palace (former residence of the Dalai Lama in the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China);
• 100 yuan - 155x77 mm; red banknote; on the front side is a Japanese plum, on the other side is the People's Congress Palace in Beijing.

1 yuan in the photo: banknote and coins.

Below are photos of yuan in other denominations.

The coins of the new series indicate the denomination and year of minting (in Arabic numerals), and the name of the bank. Coins are minted from different materials: the smallest coins of 1, 2 and 5 fen are made of aluminum. 1 yuan - made of nickel-plated steel. 1 jiao - steel with nickel plating or aluminum alloy, 5 jiao - brass or nickel with brass plating (depending on the year of minting).

How to distinguish real yuan from fake

You should run your finger through Mao Zedong's hair: on large denomination banknotes it is embossed.

Watermarks on real yuan are clear and have strictly defined boundaries.

It is worth looking at the denomination of the banknote at an angle, tilting the bill: a blue halo should be visible around the ornament.

You can use a keychain detector and shine it on the money: real ones contain special threads that glow in ultraviolet light.

A little history

It is believed that money appeared in China (coins - from the 7th century BC, and banknotes - from the 8th century AD, when paper was invented in the Middle Kingdom).

Chinese liang and money from other countries were in use. The currency was silver bars, the weight of which was measured in lians. Liang is still used in China today as a unit of weight (50 grams).

Since 1935, yuan and liang made of silver have been banned in China, and private ownership of this metal has been abolished; They also stopped issuing local currencies.

• branch 514/313 (Minsk Airport str., sector 2);
• exchange offices 527/12 and 527/360 (Privokzalnaya Square, 5);
• exchange office 527/24 (Independence Avenue, 3-2);
• exchange office 500/5 (Independence Avenue, 11/1);
• exchange office 510/11 (28 Internatsionalnaya St.).

He offered yuan at the Central Bank of Ukraine near the railway station (Bobruiskaya St., 15) and at exchange office No. 5 (Partizansky Prospekt, 6A).

CNY– the official currency of the People's Republic of China. It should be borne in mind that the word “yuan” (translated into Russian as “circle” or “round coin”) is used exclusively abroad. The internal name of the currency is Renminbi or, as is customary in Latin spelling, Renminbi, which translates as “people's money”. Bank code is CNY. 1 yuan is equal to 10 jiao or 100 fen. Banknote denominations: 100, 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 (rare) and 1 yuan, as well as 5, 2 and 1 jiao. Coins: 1 yuan, 5, 2 and 1 jiao.

Traditionally, on the front side of banknotes there is a portrait of Mao Zedong and flowers. Moreover, to the portrait of the leader, for 100 yuan a Japanese plum is added, for 50 - a chrysanthemum, for 20 - a lotus, for 10 - a rose, for 5 - a daffodil and for 1 yuan - an orchid. The reverse side is decorated with landscapes of the People's Republic of China. The coins of the latest series contain on the obverse the name of the bank and the year of issue, on the reverse side on 1 yuan there is the inscription RMB (three times; the coin is made of nickel coated with steel), on the 5 jiao there is an image of a reed (made of copper coated with steel). The 1 jiao coin is smooth and made of aluminum alloy. No other denominations have been issued since the end of the last century.

Despite the fact that China is considered one of the first countries in the world to use banknotes (coins appeared in the 7th century BC, banknotes in the 8th century AD, and paper was invented there around 100 AD .), money in its modern form traces its history there only to 1948. It was then that the People's Bank of China was created, which received the exclusive right to issue. Before this, since 1835, the Chinese liang was issued, equal to 10 mao and 100 fin. Small gold bars were used for large payments. In rural areas, smaller coins were in circulation: qiani and cache. In addition, throughout China there was a huge amount of foreign money in circulation.

The first attempt to unify the monetary system was made in 1933, but it was not successful: each province continued to issue its own coins and banknotes. In addition, part of the territory was occupied, and Japanese military yen were in circulation there from 1938 to 1943.

Until 1935, the yuan was pegged to the silver standard, and after that to the gold standard. At the same time, as a result of the monetary reform, previously issued money was replaced with banknotes. Their excessive emission led to hyperinflation: in 1936, 1 US dollar corresponded to 3.36 yuan, and in 1946 - 3,350. The outbreak of the revolution completely collapsed the national currency.

On January 1, 1948, the People's Bank of China issued the first "people's money", defining the gold content of the yuan as 0.22217 grams of pure gold. The exchange rate for old banknotes was 3 million for 1 yuan. Moreover, the reform was not carried out at once, but as the provinces were united by the communists. Local banknotes were finally replaced by a single currency only by 1952, and in Tibet - by 1959.

In the first year, the authorities had to devalue the national currency several times: initially 1 US dollar was worth 4 yuan, by the end of 1948 it was already 20. In 1955, the People's Bank of China carried out a monetary reform: from March 1 to April 30, old money was exchanged for new ones at the rate of 10,000:1.

The Chinese Yuan is not a freely convertible currency. Its official exchange rate until 1974 was set by the People's Bank in relation to the British pound sterling and the Hong Kong dollar, and later – to the US dollar and a basket of world currencies. Moreover, the official exchange rate did not always and fully reflect economic trends: since 1994, it was fixed at 8.27 yuan per dollar.

A certain relaxation in foreign exchange policy occurred only in 2005, when the Chinese authorities revalued the yuan, raising its value by 2%. By 2008, the yuan strengthened by more than 20%, to 6.82 yuan per US dollar. Nevertheless, today the PRC continues to enjoy certain foreign trade advantages, which are based on the undervalued exchange rate of the national currency. As of summer 2011, the official rate is 6.46 yuan per dollar.

From an investment point of view, China is one of the most interesting countries. Over two decades, China has made a huge leap, moving to second place in the world in terms of gross domestic product after the United States, ahead of Japan and other developed countries. Moreover, there is no consensus among economists about how much China's GDP actually amounts to. It is generally accepted that the national currency is undervalued by approximately two times, and due to the discrepancy between the official exchange rate and the real one, it is difficult to bring production data to a single indicator with other countries: figures vary from more than 5 trillion dollars to more than 10 trillion. Moreover, thanks to this situation, China has a stable positive trade balance.

At the same time, it is assumed that sooner or later the Chinese leadership will liberalize the economy and exchange rates. And then the prospect of making a profit due to the increase in the value of the currency may open up.

As for the exchange of cash currency in China, foreign citizens can exchange it for yuan freely in banks and specialized exchange offices. Moreover, if you need to make a reverse exchange - exchange the remaining yuan for another currency upon departure, then you must save the certificate of exchange.

The Renmenbi (simplified Chinese: 人民币; traditional Chinese: 人民幣; pinyin: rénmínbì; literally "people's money") is the currency of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the main unit of which is the yuan (simplified Chinese: 元 or 圆; traditional Chinese: 圓; pinyin : yuán; Wade-Giles: yüan), subdivided into jiao (角), each consisting of 10 fen (分).

The Renmenbi is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of the People's Republic of China. The ISO 4217 designation is CNY, although the variant "RMB" is often used. The romanized symbol is ¥.

Etymology

During the Republican period, many varieties of currency circulated in China, most of which were denominated in "renminbi". They were divided by name - fabi (legal tender), "golden yuan", "silver yuan". The word "yuan" literally means "round" - from the shape of the coins. The Korean and Japanese currencies, respectively the won and the yen, are relatives of the yuan and are denoted by the same Chinese sign (hanya/kanyi), albeit in different forms (원/圓 and 円/圓). In Korean and Japanese these words mean "round". They have different names for smaller units.

Zhenmenbi means "people's money". When the Chinese Communist Party seized vast territories at the end of the civil war, the People's Bank of China began issuing a single currency in 1948 for use in those territories. This currency is denominated in yuan, but is known by several names, including "Bank Notes of the People's Bank of China" (traditional Chinese: 中國人民銀行鈔票; simplified Chinese: 中国人民银行钞票; since November 1948), "New Currency" ( traditional Chinese: 新幣; simplified Chinese: 新币; since December 1948), "Banknotes of the People's Bank of China" (traditional Chinese: 中國人民銀行券; simplified Chinese: 中国人民银行券; since January 1949), "People's Banknotes" ( 人民券 - abbreviation) and, finally, “people's money” or “renmenbi” from June 1949.

First series, 1948-1955

The first series of renmenbi were issued by the People's Bank of China in December 1948, about a year after the Communist Party's victory in the civil war. They existed only in the form of paper money and replaced a variety of monetary units that were in circulation in communist-controlled areas. One of the first tasks of the new government was to combat the hyperinflation that had afflicted China in the last years of the Kuomintang era. In 1955 there was a revaluation. One new yuan was now equal to 10 thousand old ones.

Banknotes

On December 1, 1948, the newly founded People's Bank of China issued banknotes in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 1000 yuan. Banknotes of 200, 500, 5000 and 10,000 yuan appeared in 1949, and in 1950 - 50,000 yuan. 62 design options were used. Banknotes were officially abolished between 1 April 1955 and 10 May 1955.

The first banknotes bore the words "People's Bank of China", "Republic of China" and the denomination written in Chinese characters in Dong Biwu's handwriting.

The official name "renmenbi" was first recorded in June 1949. After development of a new series began in 1950, the old banknotes were belatedly called the "first series of renmenbi".

Second yuan renminbi, 1955–present

The second series of banknotes appeared in 1955. During the period of the administrative-command system, unrealistic exchange rates of the renminbi were set against Western currencies and the most severe exchange rules were used. With the opening of the Chinese economy in 1978, a dual currency system emerged - the renminbi was used only within the country, and certificates existed for trade with foreigners. The unrealistic exchange rate led to the emergence of a black market.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the PRC worked to make the renminbi a convertible currency. With the help of exchange centers, it was possible to bring the exchange rate to a realistic level and get rid of the double system.

Renminbi are suitable for current accounts, but not for capital movements. The goal is to make this currency fully convertible. But, partly due to the Asian financial crisis of 1998, China is not confident that the financial system can withstand rapid overseas movements of hot money. As a result, in 2007, the Chinese government allowed foreign exchange transactions to a limited extent.

Coins

In 1955, aluminum coins of 1, 2 and 5 fen appeared. In 1980, brass coins of 1, 2 and 5 jiao and copper-nickel coins of 1 yuan were added. Coins of 1 and 2 jiao survived only until 1981, and coins of 5 jiao and 1 yuan - until 1985. In 1981, new coins appeared - aluminum coins of 1 jiao, brass coins of 5 jiao and 1 yuan coins made of nickel-plated steel. The minting of 1 and 2 fen coins ceased in 1991, and the 5 fen coins ceased a year later. New coins of 1 and 5 jiao and 1 yuan appeared in 1999-2002. Fen and jiao are practically not needed because prices have increased. Chinese merchants avoid fractional prices (eg ¥9.99), preferring whole prices (9 or 10 yuan).

Coins are used differently in different places. For example, in Shanghai and Shenzhen, coins are more often used for goods under 1 yuan, while in Beijing and Xi'an, banknotes are used.

Banknotes

In 1955, banknotes of 1, 2 and 5 fen, 1, 2 and 5 jiao, 1, 2, 3, 5 and 10 yuan (the date 1953) appeared. These denominations, with the exception of the fen and 3 yuan, continue to circulate. In 1980, they added banknotes of 50 and 100 yuan, and in 1999 - 20 yuan.

The denomination of each banknote is indicated in Chinese. The numbers themselves are given in numerical symbols and Arabic numerals. The denomination and the words "People's Bank of China" appear on the back of the note in Yi, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uyghur and Tsuang. On the obverse of the coin, the denomination is indicated in Chinese braille - starting from the fourth series.

Second series

The second series of renmenbi banknotes (the first was used for the previous currency) appeared on March 1, 1955. Each note bore the words "People's Bank of China" and the denomination in Uyghur, Tibetan and Mongolian. There are banknotes of ¥0.01, ¥0.02, ¥0.05, ¥0.1, ¥0.2, ¥0.5, ¥1, ¥2, ¥3, ¥5 and ¥10.

Third episode

The third series of renmenbi banknotes appeared on April 15, 1962. For the next 20 years, series 2 and series 3 banknotes were used simultaneously. Series 3 banknote denominations are ¥0.1, ¥0.2, ¥0.5, ¥1, ¥2, ¥5 and ¥10. They fell out of use in the 1990s, and were finally abandoned on July 1, 2000.

Episode four

The fourth series appeared between 1987 and 1997, although the dates on the banknotes are 1980, 1990 or 1996. They are still in circulation. Denominations: ¥0.1, ¥0.2, ¥0.5, ¥1, ¥2, ¥5, ¥10, ¥50 and ¥100.

Episode five

In 1999, the fifth series of banknotes was gradually introduced. It includes banknotes in denominations of ¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥20, ¥50 and ¥100.

Likely future design options

On March 13, 2006, delegates to an advisory body to the People's Congress proposed to feature Sun Yat-sen and Deng Xiaoping on banknotes. But this proposal is still far from being implemented.

1 Yuan
2 Yuan
10 Yuan
20 Yuan
50 Yuan
100 Yuan

Use outside China

Two administrative regions, Hong Kong and Macau, have their own currencies. In accordance with the principle of "one country, two systems" and the basic laws of the two territories, national laws do not apply. Therefore, the Hong Kong dollar and pataca remain legal means of payment in these territories, but the renminbi is not.

RMB is the second most popular currency in Hong Kong and is becoming the main one. Banks in Hong Kong allow you to open accounts in Renminbi.

Zhenmenbi existed in Macau even until 1999, when the territory returned to the PRC from Portugal. Banks in Macau use renminbi-based credit cards but do not provide loans. The casinos do not accept such credit cards.

The Chinese government in Taiwan believes that the use of renmenbi will create a secret economy and undermine sovereignty. Tourists in Taiwan are allowed to carry 20 thousand renmenbi with them. This money must be exchanged for Taiwanese dollars at trial exchange offices in Matsu and Kinmen. The Chin Shui-bian administration insists it will not allow a full currency conversion until China signs a bilateral foreign exchange agreement. President Ma Ying-jeo promises to allow currency conversion as soon as possible.

Cambodia and Nepal use renminbi as their official currency, while Laos and Myanmar allow its use in border provinces. Vietnam allows the exchange of renmenbi for dong, although unofficially.

Exchange rate

Ten years before 2005, the Chinese currency was artificially maintained at 8.2765 yuan to the US dollar. On July 21, 2005, the People's Bank of China revalued the yuan to 8.11 to the dollar, abandoned artificial exchange rate support and switched to a floating exchange rate based on supply and demand. The dollar to renminbi ratio can vary within 0.3% at the central bank parity. On May 18, 2007, the bank expanded this limit to 0.5%. The bank says the basket of currencies is dominated by the US dollar, euro, Japanese yen and Korean won, with British pounds, Thai baht, Russian rubles and Australian, Canadian and Singapore dollars less so.

On April 23, 2008, one US dollar was worth 6.9837 yuan, that is, the yuan rose by 18.51% - this is the highest rate since the lifting of the artificial limit. On April 10, 2008, the dollar was worth 6.9920 yuan - this is the first time in more than 10 years that the dollar was cheaper than 7 yuan.

National currency is a system of monetary units that are issued by the central bank of a country and used for settlements within it. Naturally, each state has its own. In Russia it is the ruble, in Great Britain it is the pound sterling, and in China it is the yuan.

The history of the yuan

The history of the name of Chinese currency is very interesting. During the Qing Dynasty, this was the name given to gold coins. Literally translated from Chinese, it is a round coin (a round object).

The first mention of it dates back 4,500 thousand years ago, and in 1024, instead of copper money, paper bills began to be issued. Later, all old banknotes were replaced with new paper money.

From 1835 to 1933, China's currency was called the "liang". It looked like a silver round coin. And only in 1948 the National Bank was created. According to his decision, all funds in circulation were unified and a single monetary unit appeared. But the name for it arose only in 1960.

In addition to the name yuan, the national currency of China is called “renminbi” - people's money. And the official name of Chinese money in the West is renminbi. Control over it, its course and development is controlled by the Central Bank - People's Bank of China (PBoC).

Initially, the sign “¥” was used to indicate the Japanese Yen, but recently the Chinese have also begun to use it instead of the traditional “Ұ”. This leads to confusion about currencies. For example, if 100¥ is written, then it is possible to understand whether this is the national currency of China or Japan only in connection with the context.

Zhenminbi and yuan. Banknote denominations

It cannot be said that these two concepts mean the same thing. Since the first word in the translation sounds like “people’s money,” it is impossible to say that, for example, matches cost 5 people’s money. But saying 5 round objects (round coins) will be correct.

The spelling of the name of Chinese money is also different: in official documents it is RNB (renminbi), while in banks and exchange offices the designation CNY is used.

Yuan consists of 10 Yao (Jiao, Mao), Yao - from 10 fen. Fen is practically not found in everyday life at present. Paper bills have the following denominations: 1,5,10,20,50, 100 yuan. The largest of them is equivalent to approximately 500 rubles. In addition, 1 yuan is issued in the form of a coin.

Since 1948, 5 series of paper bills have been issued. The last of them, the fifth, in 1999. Banknotes of the fourth series are still accepted for payment in China, but are gradually being withdrawn from circulation. The latest series' paper money has several differences from previous series. Their obverse is the same, regardless of the denomination - Mao Zedong is depicted everywhere. And the picture on the reverse of bills with different denominations is different.

• 1 – landscape of Lake Xihu
• 5 – Mount Taishan
• 10 – Landscape of the Three Gorges Valley
• 20 – Guilin depicted
• 50 – palace in Lhasa
• 100th Hall of the People

Moreover, what’s interesting is that it’s easy to distinguish a real bill from a fake. To do this, just run your fingertip over the image of Mao Zedong's hair. On a real banknote this place will be in relief.

In addition, the Central Bank of China has developed 11 degrees of protection for the largest banknote.

Dollar and currency basket

Initially, immediately after its creation, the yuan was directly linked to the dollar. Only in 2005 did the People's Bank of China abandon its link to it and began to focus on the currency basket. In addition to the dollar, it is dominated by the Euro, Yen and Won (the currency of South Korea). In second place in importance are the British pound sterling, the Thai baht, our ruble, the Australian, Canadian and Singapore dollars.

Thanks to this measure, the national currency of China is strengthening, and its exchange rate is increasing by about 7% every year. Despite this, the national currency of this country does not seek to absorb all others on the world market. And experts continue to experiment on it within the country. For example, in Hong Kong a different yuan is used. Unlike the generally accepted one, it is abbreviated CNH rather than CNY.

Sometimes, to attract cheap foreign yuan into the economy, CNH is allowed to turn into CNY at the request of Chinese state corporations. Presumably, the rules of interbank regulation and foreign exchange processes for the circulation of ordinary yuan abroad are being worked out on the CNH-yuan.

Against the backdrop of recent events in the global economy, jumps in the exchange rate of the ruble, euro and dollar, the national money of the PRC is only strengthening. This is due to the decision of the Chinese government, which refused to take part in the “international devaluation race.”

It is also worth noting that on December 29 last year, the united currency of Russia and China was introduced to the foreign exchange markets for the first time. This synthetic currency is backed by “gold reserves” on the one hand, and by resources on the Russian side. If these countries switch to yuan payments on a large scale, it will mean that the dollar's influence in the global economy will be noticeably less.

Tourist Information

When visiting this country for the first time, you can exchange money for yuan at official banks, which are open from Monday to Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Saturdays, as well as in some hotels and shops. They exchange currency seven days a week. If there is any unspent money left before leaving the country, it can also be exchanged for cash in the desired currency by presenting a foreign currency exchange certificate valid for 6 months. Therefore, you should not throw away checks from exchange offices.

Thus, having briefly examined the history of the origin of the national currency of the People's Republic of China, we can trace all stages of its development and gradual strengthening. Therefore, it is likely that China’s currency may soon become an alternative to the dollar. After all, this country is the second largest gold reserve in the world.

One thing is for sure, today you can go on vacation to this country completely freely, without worrying about the events taking place in the global economy and politics. China has too long a history to allow itself to lose ground. By the way, it is safer to store your savings not in dollars, but in yuan.