Manchukuo yuan

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Bank of Manchukuo 1 yuan (1932)
Bank of Manchukuo 1 yuan (1932)

The Manchukuo yuan (圓) was the official unit of currency of the Empire of Manchukuo, from June 1932- August 1945.

The monetary unit was based on one basic pure silver patron of 23.91 grammes. It replaced the Chinese tael of Haikwan, the local monetary system in common and regular use in Manchuria before the Mukden incident as legal tender.

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[edit] History

Initially bank notes andcoins were produced minted by the Bank of Japan, but were later was issued from the mint of the Central Bank of Manchou in the Manchukuo capital of Hsinking (now Changchun). Due to worldwide fluctuations in the price of silver during the 1930s, Manchukuo took the yuan off the silver standard in 1935 and subsequently pegged the yuan to, and later reached approximate exchange parity with, the Japanese yen.

Throughout this period about half the value of the issued notes was backed by specie reserves. The notes issued were in five denominations, one hundred, ten, five and one yuan and five chiao (one-half yuan), and typically depicted Qing dynasty rulers of China on the obverse. To keep up with the inflationary pressures typically experienced by Japanese-controlled areas towards the end of World War II, a 1,000 yuan note was issued in 1944.

Manchukuo fibre coins
Manchukuo fibre coins

The Yuan was subdivided into 10 chiao (角), 100 fen (分) or 1000 li (釐). Coins were issued in denominations of 5 li up to 10 fen.

In 1944 and 1945, Manchukuo issued coins (1 and 5 fen) made of what the "Standard Catalog of World Coins" describes as "red or brown fiber", resembling cardboard. These are a rare example of non-metallic coins.

In 1948, after the end of World War II, approximately 12 billion yuan of Central Bank of Manchou notes were redeemed by the Tung Pei Bank.

[edit] Banknotes

10 Yuan note, 1937 (front) depicting Emperor Ch'ien-lung
10 Yuan note, 1937 (front) depicting Emperor Ch'ien-lung
10 Yuan note, 1937 (back), depicting the Central Bank of Manchou
10 Yuan note, 1937 (back), depicting the Central Bank of Manchou

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