The official
Chinese currency,
ren min bi means "the peoples' money". It has been used since the
communist takeover in 1949, and as of current standing one US dollar can get 8.3
RMB. Right now, the
banking system of
China is rather closed, it is extremely difficult to obtain
RMB overseas, bringing large amounts of
RMB out of
China is not recommended, for not many banks accept
RMB exchanges. It makes it very
annoying travelling into
China, for you are forced right at the
airport to exchange
money, always at the atrocious
bank rates.
Like American money, one RMB can be divided into 100 fen, or cents. 10 cents make 1 jiao, or a dime. A simple system. 1 RMB notes have fallen into disuse, given the uselessless of a single RMB in China these days. Coins go up to 1 RMB. The notes are not too bad looking, certainly better than the bland green American monies.
- 10 RMB - As a tribute to the minorities of China, the 10 RMB note is emblazoned with a picture of a couple of Western Muslim minorities. An interesting green with nice decorations.
- 50 RMB - The proletariat gets the 50 RMB note. The three main professions: service, agriculture and army gets representation. Not a bad looking note, a nice golden color.
- 100 RMB - Mao, Zhou Enlai, and a couple other communist grand-daddies. The dullest of all Chinese banknotes.
The relatively small 100 RMB note is annoying, for any major transaction sans credit card requires huge stacks of these bills. Not as bad as the throwaway money of 1920's Germany, but getting close.
The RMB is also one of the most widely forged money in the world, next to the American money, because it doesn't use much special technology to protect it (wonder paper, watermarks, and the like). One must be on the constant lookout in China for forgeries, as they will get you in a world of trouble. They are as easily detected as running a finger over the note, forgeries are printed on plain office paper, with a very different texture than regular banknotes.