500 Yuan Panda

China's Panda gold series has changed its panda design annually since 1982 — with the sole exception of 1999 and 2000, which repeated — a policy that functionally prevents hoarding at spot and drives a secondary collector market entirely parallel to its bullion value. The 30g denomination replaced the prior troy-ounce weight standard in 2016, when China's mint converted the entire Panda bullion lineup to metric weights, a decision that briefly disrupted interoperability with Western bullion markets and irritated dealers accustomed to the old sizing.