10000 Yuan 5th issue

The fifth series of the first renminbi (第一套人民币) was issued under extraordinary pressure — the People's Bank was still consolidating regional currencies absorbed from Kuomintang-controlled territories and various Communist base area notes, all while managing severe inflationary pressure inherited from the Republican period. This 10,000 yuan denomination was among the highest face values issued in the entire first series, a direct consequence of that inflation: by 1951, even large-denomination notes had limited purchasing power in daily transactions.

The first renminbi series was officially retired in 1955 when the second series launched at a conversion rate of 10,000 old yuan to 1 new yuan — effectively confirming how far the currency had been debased before stabilization.