5 Yuan Central Bank of China

By 1942, Thomas De La Rue in London was still printing for the Central Bank of China despite the Japanese occupation of much of eastern China — physical delivery of finished notes required routing through supply chains that grew increasingly complicated as the Pacific war expanded. Whether this issue actually reached circulation in meaningful quantities before the inflationary spiral of 1943–1945 eroded lower denominations into practical uselessness is a reasonable question; the 5 Yuan face value was already becoming marginal by mid-war.

The watermark security feature is notable given that counterfeit Chinese government notes were a deliberate Japanese military strategy during the occupation period.