Chinese Yuan Renminbi (CNY) Profile

¥

yuán (元);  1/10,  jiǎo (角);  1/100 fēn (分)
¥1, 1 jiao, 5 jiao
1 fen, 2 fen, 5 fen
¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥20, ¥50, ¥100, 1 jiao, 5 jiao
¥2, 2 jiao
People's Bank of China (www.pbc.gov.cn)

1. Nicknames: kuài (块),  máo (毛)
2. Pegged with Partially, to a basket of trade-weighted international currencies.

Chinese yuan renminbi users

Renminbi is the official currency of China (officially the People’s Republic of China), which is a country in East Asia.

Renminbi is not the official currency in Hong Kong and Macau. In Hong Kong, Renminbi may be accepted in some stores, but only notes, not coins. In Macau, Renminbi can be used more widely, except in casinos, which basically accept Hong Kong dollars only or sometimes accept Macanese pataca. However, we suggest exchanging Renminbi to Macanese pataca for a better local exchange rate. It’s easy to exchange foreign currencies in Macau, either in hotels, banks, and authorized exchange dealers, or at some 24-hour exchange bureaus at Macau International Airport (Taipa Island) and at the Lisboa Hotel (Macau Peninsula). Renminbi is generally not accepted except at very few popular tourist sites in Taiwan.

In some neighboring countries, Renminbi is accepted in various ways. North Korea used to accept Renminbi but announced not to use foreign currencies since 2012. In Myanmar (Burma), Renminbi is only exchanged and used in the border cities. Renminbi is widely accepted in Mongolia, alongside the official currency of Mongolian tugrik (MNT).

Chinese yuan is the primary unit of Renminbi. One yuan is divided into 10 jiao or 100 fen. When used in English in the context of the modern foreign exchange market, the Chinese yuan most commonly refers to the Renminbi (CNY) or its full name as Chinese Yuan Renminbi.

Chinese yuan renminbi history

The currently circulating “Renminbi” was actually introduced in 1955 as the “second series of Renminbi.” It was followed by the third series (existed from April 20, 1960, to July 1, 2000), the fourth series (issued on April 27, 1987), and the currently circulating series, the fifth series (initially issued on October 1, 1999).

The name “Renminbi” was first recorded as an official name in June 1949. The second series of Renminbi replaced the previous “first series Renminbi” at 1 new yuan = 10,000 old yuan. The first series of Renminbi was issued in December 1948 with only paper money, however, with a total of 62 different designs.

Since 2005, the Renminbi has been pegged to a basket of trade-weighted international currencies.

Chinese yuan renminbi coins and banknotes

The primary unit of Renminbi is the yuan (元). One yuan is subdivided into 10 jiǎo (角), or 100 fen (分).

Currently, in circulation, coins are in denominations of 1 jiao, 5 jiao, and 1 yuan, and banknotes are in denominations of 1 jiao, 5 jiao, 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 yuan. The coins of 1 fen, 2 fen, and 5 fen, and banknotes of 2 jiao and 2 yuan, are rarely used.

In most Mandarin Chinese speaking areas, Renminbi is usually counted as "kuai" rather than "yuan." Meanwhile, in Cantonese speaking areas, "kuai," "jiao," and "fen" are called "mān" (蚊), "hòuh" (毫), and "sīn" (仙) respectively.