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10 Dollars
| Issuer | Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London & China |
|---|---|
| Year | 1883-1889 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 10 Dollars |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is typeset in letterpress with an engraved royal coat of arms vignette at the centre top, flanked on each side by the numeral '10' within oval guilloche panels. The serial number appears twice in the upper register alongside the place of issue 'HONG KONG' and the manuscript date, below which the bank's promise-to-pay text reads in italic script 'TEN DOLLARS' as the principal inscription. A fine geometric border frames the entire face, and the legend 'HONG KONG BRANCH' runs across the topmost panel. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | HONG KONG BRANCH THE CHARTERED MERCANTILE BANK OF INDIA, LONDON & CHINA Promises to pay the Bearer on Demand TEN DOLLARS or the equivalent in the Currency of the Island value received By order of the Court of Directors HONG KONG INCORPORATED BY ROYAL CHARTER |
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| Comments |
The Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London and China was one of the major British exchange banks operating across Asia in the nineteenth century, with note-issuing rights in Hong Kong, Singapore, and the Straits Settlements. By the time this note was produced, the bank was already under pressure — it had narrowly survived a severe liquidity crisis in 1866 triggered by the collapse of Overend, Gurney & Co. in London, which brought down dozens of institutions connected to the Eastern trade.
The bank was eventually absorbed into the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China in 1893, making the 1883–1889 window the final years of independent issue. Notes from this late period are correspondingly scarce.