50 Yuan Central Bank of China

The Central Bank of China's 1945 issues came at a moment when Nationalist currency was already under serious inflationary pressure — the wartime money supply had expanded so aggressively that public confidence in fiat notes was eroding faster than new denominations could be introduced. A 50 Yuan note, which would have been a substantial sum just a few years earlier, was losing purchasing power rapidly by the time these sheets left the Shanghai factory.

The Central Engraving and Printing Plant's Shanghai facility had operated under Japanese occupation and was only returned to Nationalist control in late 1945 following Japan's surrender. Notes produced in this transitional window carry an ambiguous provenance — same presses, new authority.