Renminbi History, Definition, & Facts

In English, some people call it the Chinese “dollar.” In Chinese, there are three common names and two symbols in regular use. In fact, mobile payments have become so common that some merchants no longer keep enough small bills on hand to make change. Today, renminbi is the general name for the Chinese currency, while yuan is the name of a unit of that currency. One way to understand this is to imagine a country that uses gold as its currency. The word renminbi came into use the same year the People’s Republic of China was founded, in 1949. The word yuan, however, is much older, and was originally used to refer to the silver coins that European merchants used to trade with Chinese merchants almost 500 years ago.

The term “yuan” has historical significance, dating back to the Ming dynasty. It is derived from the silver ingot, a form of currency during that era. Today, the yuan banknotes and coins are widely used in everyday transactions, and its international symbol is CNY (Chinese Yuan).

It issued the first RMB notes in December 1948, about a year before the Chinese Communist Party defeated the Kuomintang government. Below are a few of the most common questions we receive from people looking into what the currency of China is. If you have further questions you would like to ask our team, don’t hesitate to get in touch. Hong Kong’s currency is the Hong Kong Dollar and Macau’s currency is called the Pataca. Anne Meredith holds an MA in International Politics and Chinese Studies from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). As part of the graduation requirements for the program, Anne wrote and defended a 70-page Master’s thesis entirely in 汉字 (hànzì; Chinese characters).

The People’s Bank of China has exclusive authority to issue currency. Banknotes are issued in denominations from 1 fen to 100 renminbi. The reverse side of most coins, which range in denominations from 1 fen to 1 renminbi, contains images of historic buildings and the country’s diverse landscape. Both the Qing dynasty and early Republican government circulated silver yuan coins and banknotes.

What Is the Currency of China? Your Guide to CNY

In particular, they have expertise What Is the S&P 500 in banking for foreigners, non-residents, and both foreign and offshore companies. This article is part of our free series on foreign currency bank accounts. Travelers to China are often confused by how to refer to Chinese money.

How Many Renminbi Are There in a Dollar?

The yuan is further divided into smaller units called jiao (角) and fen (分). One yuan is equivalent to ten jiao, and one jiao is further divided into ten fen. While jiao is a less frequently used unit, fen is the smallest denomination and is rarely seen in circulation. If you are looking to exchange Iranian rial into Chinese renminbi, it is important to note that Iran does hold the cheapest currency in the world. So, if you happen to hold any rial and are looking to exchange into Chinese currency, it might be difficult to facilitate. The official name for Chinese currency is Renminbi, which literally translates to People’s Currency and is abbreviated to RMB.

• You may also notice these more complicated ways of writing numbers on certain official receipts that you get in China.
• Instead, most people in China refer to their money as “kuài” (块).
• China uses currency controls to maintain the value of the Chinese yuan at a favorable level.
• Today, renminbi is the general name for the Chinese currency, while yuan is the name of a unit of that currency.
• The currency of China is referred to as either the Chinese yuan (CNY) or renminbi (RMB).
• Additionally, cash can usually also be exchanged at hotels, though the rates are often unattractive.

Yuan vs. Renminbi: What’s the Difference?

At present, banknotes in denominations of one, five, 10, 20, 50, and 100 yuan are in circulation. It is even possible to spend an entire day paying for everything with a smartphone instead of cash. Even the owners of small vegetable stalls in traditional wet markets accept mobile payments. If you look closely at a 1 yuan banknote, however, you will see the characters 壹圆 (yī yuán) under the “1” in the middle to the left of Mao’s portrait.

During the imperial era, unique coins were issued to signify the authority of the ruling dynasty. Approximately 1.376 trillion yuáns (5.5%) of the currency reserves exist in gold reserves. The remainder consists of foreign currencies, special drawing rights in the International Monetary Fund and other reserve positions.

How Much Is One Chinese Yuan Worth?

That said, in certain instances, it may be possible to use certain foreign currencies like US dollars. However, the locations that will accept US dollars are typically those that cater to foreign tourists, including large hotels and tourism operators. As China became one of the world’s preeminent centres of finance and trade in the early 21st century, the renminbi rose as a global currency. In recognition of the renminbi’s elevated status, in November 2015 the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that the renminbi was to become one of its reserve currencies. Thus, it would join the U.S. dollar, the euro, the British pound sterling, and the Japanese yen as one of the IMF’s Special Drawing Rights currencies used for intergovernmental loans.

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You may also notice these more complicated ways of writing numbers on certain official receipts that you get in China. The value of the RMB was tightly controlled during the period of the command economy. One yuan was pegged at 2.46 yuan to the U.S. dollar until 1971. The PBOC allowed the yuan to trade on international markets as the Chinese economy began opening to the world market, but the floating exchange rate was still tightly controlled.

• It can be purchased through certain banks in select Chinese cities as well as through online payment services WeChat and Alipay.
• Even the question of what to call Chinese money can be puzzling.
• Banknotes are issued in denominations from 1 fen to 100 renminbi.
• However, it is important to recognize that although physical bills are still very much in circulation in China, mobile payment options such as WeChat Pay and Alipay are becoming more and more common.
• If you don’t have any idea about the trend of the RMB’s exchange rate, then you can pay 50% of the tour price at the time of booking, and the rest when your tour gets closer.

The main columns are exchange rate, knowledge, news, currency and so on. As China has emerged as a global economic powerhouse, the Renminbi has gained international recognition. The country has been working towards the internationalization of its currency, making it more accessible and widely used in global trade.

Although they look quite different, the characters 壹圆 (yī yuán) are actually the same as 一元 (yī yuán). Chinese paper money comes in denominations of one, five, ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred. China uses currency controls to maintain the value of the Chinese yuan at a favorable level. The PBOC sets a midpoint value against the U.S. dollar every day based on previous trading sessions and movements in international currency markets.

The traditional character for yuan is also used in the currencies of other Chinese-speaking regions in the 2020s, including the New Taiwan dollar and the Hong Kong dollar. However, the Chinese renminbi is often referred to using different names. These names include the official ISO 4217 code CNY and the abbreviated form RMB. To clarify, both CNY and RMB refer to the same currency, the Chinese renminbi. That said, China imposes strict currency controls on the currency domestically, which can result in renminbi trading at a different price inside and outside of the country.

The unofficial abbreviation CNH is sometimes used to refer to the offshore price of the Chinese yuan to distinguish between these two prices. Legally, you are permitted to bring 20,000 CNY, 5,000 USD or the equivalent in other foreign currencies into China with you when you come. Since this number can sometimes change, be sure to check to make sure this is still the case before you travel. If you aren’t quite sure how to use Chinese mobile payment platforms, you’ll be pleased to know that China does still accept cash. However, it is important to recognize that although physical bills are still very much in circulation in China, mobile payment options such as WeChat Pay and Alipay are becoming more and more common.

For this reason, traders often use the abbreviation CNH in order to refer to the price of renminbi outside of the country. With this in mind, it is generally advised to either convert your foreign currency into Chinese renminbi before traveling or do so when you arrive in the country. To help you with this, let’s take a look at how to exchange money into Chinese currency now.