Catalog
20 Yen US Military Currency - B-Note
| Issuer | Allied Military Authority |
|---|---|
| Year | 1945 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Yen (1871-date) |
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| Obverse description | Black intaglio on light blue guilloche underprint with magenta letterpress text; a large bold 'B' occupies the central underprint field, flanked by the bilingual denomination 'TWENTY YEN / 貳拾圓' in magenta. The value '20' appears in ornamental cartouches at left and right, with '拾貳' in smaller panels at the corners, and the legend 'MILITARY CURRENCY' running along the lower border beneath the serial number printed twice in black. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | ISSUED PURSUANT TO MILITARY PROCLAMATION 軍事布告に基き發行す (Translation: Issued pursuant to military proclamation) |
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| Comments |
The B-yen series was issued by Allied occupation authorities following Japan's surrender in August 1945, specifically to prevent the existing Japanese military from drawing on domestic currency stocks to fund any continued resistance or postwar destabilization. The "B" designation distinguished these notes from regular Bank of Japan issues, and Japanese banks were instructed to accept them at par — a directive that generated significant friction with the Bank of Japan from the outset.
Inflation eroded the series badly. By 1948, B-yen purchasing power had collapsed alongside the broader occupation-era monetary disorder, and the notes were eventually superseded when SCAP imposed a single fixed exchange rate of 360 yen to the dollar in April 1949.