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50 Dollars
| Issuer | Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation |
|---|---|
| Year | 1877 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Horizontal format note with a central vignette of the Corporation's coat of arms flanked by two oval denomination cartouches each reading '$50'. The issuing legend 'THE HONG KONG & SHANGHAI BANKING CORPORATION' runs across the upper register in bold letterpress, above a promise-to-pay text in cursive script reading 'Fifty Dollars'. Chinese characters border both vertical edges and run along the top margin, while the lower margin bears 'HONG KONG' in large capitals; the note is signed 'By Order of the Board of Directors' with manuscript date 'SEP 4 1877' and a pre-printed 'Chief Manager' signature line. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | THE HONG KONG & SHANGHAI BANKING CORPORATION FIFTY DOLLARS $50 HONG KONG By Order of the Board of Directors 香港上海滙理銀行 伍拾員 |
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| Comments |
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation began issuing its own notes almost immediately after its 1865 founding — one of the few private banks in the region with the standing to do so credibly. This 1877 fifty-dollar note predates any formal colonial currency ordinance governing private bank issues, meaning HSBC's notes circulated on institutional trust alone, backed by the bank's balance sheet rather than any statutory guarantee.
Pick 125 is among the earliest dated issues in the series and survivors are exceptionally rare. The cotton substrate was sourced and printed locally in Hong Kong, which was unusual for high-value colonial bank paper of this period — most comparable issues from the region were sent to London or Edinburgh for printing.