5 Yuan

Manchukuo's Central Bank was established in 1932 as the sole monetary authority of the Japanese puppet state, replacing a chaotic patchwork of regional currencies. This 1938 issue belongs to a series printed to support the accelerating war economy, as Japanese military expenditure in China was placing severe pressure on money supply across the occupied territories.

The bank's notes circulated under a managed exchange rate pegged to the Japanese yen, enforced by law rather than market confidence. Counterfeiting of Manchukuo currency by Chinese resistance networks was widespread enough that Japanese authorities issued periodic warnings and modified security features across successive print runs during this period.