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20 Fen / Cents
| Issuer | Central Bank of China |
|---|---|
| Year | 1930 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Customs Gold Unit (1930-1948) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 行銀央中 海上 付即票憑 廿關 分金 印年九十國民華中 司公票鈔國美 (Translation: Central Bank of China Shanghai Pay on Demand 20 Fen Customs Gold Units Printed in the 19th year of the Republic of China American Bank Note Company) |
| Reverse description | Central vignette of the Central Bank of China building in Shanghai, an imposing multi-storey neoclassical structure engraved in fine intaglio detail within a rectangular frame, with the bank's name arched above in bold lettering. The denomination 'TWENTY CENTS CUSTOMS GOLD UNIT' appears in a panel below the building vignette, with 'SHANGHAI, 1930' and the printer's imprint at the foot, and corner numerals '20' and 'CENTS' repeated at all four margins. |
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| Comments |
The Central Bank of China was established by the Nationalist government in 1928 as one of the "four big banks" intended to consolidate fiscal control under the Kuomintang. This 20 Fen fractional note appeared two years later, at a time when small-denomination coinage was chronically short in circulation — copper and nickel coins were being hoarded, melted, or simply failed to reach rural markets in sufficient quantities, pushing the demand for low-value paper substitutes.
ABNC's involvement was typical for Chinese government printing contracts of the period; the Republic consistently turned to foreign security printers rather than develop sufficient domestic capacity.