The customs gold unit (CGU) was a currency issued by the ''
Central Bank of China
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
'' between 1930 and 1948. In
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
, the name of the currency was 關金圓 ''guānjīnyuán'', literally "customs gold yuan" but the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
name given on the back of the notes was "customs gold unit". It was divided into 100 cents (關金分). As the name suggests, this currency was initially used for customs payments, but in 1942 it was put into general circulation for use by the public at 20 times its face value in terms of the first Chinese yuan.
History
The customs gold unit was adopted on 1 February 1930 to replace the Haikwan (Hǎiguān) or Customs
Chinese yuan
The renminbi (; symbol: ¥; ISO code: CNY; abbreviation: RMB) is the official currency of the People's Republic of China and one of the world's most traded currencies, ranking as the fifth most traded currency in the world as of April 202 ...
, based on the current yuan–dollar and yuan–sterling market exchange rates. After the UK abandoned gold in September 1931, only the yuan–dollar rate was used until 1933, when the sterling price of gold in the London market determined the value of the CGU. Central Bank of China sold CGU notes at the prevailing quotation so that businessmen could minimize exchange risks resulting from changes in the yuan–dollar and yuan–sterling exchange rates. Use of this currency was very limited, with only about CGU375,000–475,000 outstanding at the time of the 1935 currency reform.
The Chinese currency reform of 3 November 1935, which created the Chinese national yuan or dollar (CNC$), commonly known as the Chinese legal tender dollar or fapi in English (), also fixed a crossrate of CGU100 = CNC$226.
The CGU's role in paying custom duties disappeared in 1941 when the government set ad valorem customs rates. On 1 April 1942 the custom gold unit's theoretical gold content was raised to 888.671 mg fine gold, equal to one US dollar. In practice, the customs gold unit lost all its special features and simply became equivalent to 20 Chinese legal tender dollars (CGU1 = CNC$20).
When Nationalist troops and officials arrived in Shanghai in 1945, they brought with them newly printed notes of 20 and 50 customs gold units. These notes proved more popular locally than Chinese legal tender notes and, due to a mistaken belief in the existence of a gold-redemption clause, they commanded a premium when exchanged for Central Reserve Bank notes of the Nanking National Government. CGU notes circulated alongside ordinary legal tender notes until 1948, when both were replaced by the gold yuan at the rate of 1 gold yuan = 3,000,000 Chinese legal tender dollars = 150,000 customs gold units.
Banknotes
On 1 May 1930, the Central Bank of China put into circulation notes in denominations of 0.10, 0.20, 1, 5, and 10 customs gold units. These notes were printed by
American Bank Note Company
ABCorp is an American corporation providing contract manufacturing and related services to the authentication, payment and secure access business sectors. Its history dates back to 1795 as a secure engraver and printer, and assisting the newl ...
and dated 1930.
On 1 April 1942, the Central Bank of China began to put into circulation its unissued stock of about CGU100 million in 1930-dated notes, including 20 and 50 denominations, not circulated previously.
In January 1947, the Central Bank of China released notes of 250 and 500 customs gold units. Although dated 1930, these notes had been printed by American Bank Note Company in 1946. Inflation led to yet higher denominations: 1000, 2000, 5000 in December 1947, and 10,000, 25,000, 50,000, and 250,000 in July 1948, shortly before the currency reform of that year.
Several note types were produced by nine different printers, with slight differences in guilloche and size, but maintaining the same general design, with Dr.
Sun Yat-sen
Sun Yat-sen (; also known by several other names; 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925)Singtao daily. Saturday edition. 23 October 2010. section A18. Sun Yat-sen Xinhai revolution 100th anniversary edition . was a Chinese politician who serve ...
on the face and the Shanghai Customs House on the back. The back of some of the notes bore the following English text preceding the denomination: "''The Central Bank of China promises to pay the bearer on demand at its office here.''" Printers included the American Bank Note Company,
Waterlow and Sons
Waterlow and Sons Limited was a major worldwide engraver of currency, postage stamps, stocks and bond certificates based in London, Watford and Dunstable in England. The company was founded as a family business in 1810. It was acquired in 1961 b ...
, the Security Banknote Company, the Chung Hua Book Company,
Thomas De La Rue
Thomas de la Rue (24 March 1793 – 7 June 1866) was a printer from Guernsey who founded De La Rue plc, a printing company which is now the world's largest commercial security printer and papermaker.
Biography
Born on Le Bourg, Forest, Guernsey to ...
China Engraving and Printing Works
The Central Engraving and Printing Plant (CEPP; ) is a subsidiary of the Central Bank of the Republic of China (Taiwan). It is responsible for printing the paper bank notes of Taiwan in its currency, the New Taiwan dollar.
History
The company was ...
.
Other uses
The
Flying Tigers
The First American Volunteer Group (AVG) of the Republic of China Air Force, nicknamed the Flying Tigers, was formed to help oppose the Japanese invasion of China. Operating in 1941–1942, it was composed of pilots from the United States Ar ...
, an
American Volunteer Group
The American Volunteer Groups were volunteer air units organized by the United States government to aid the Nationalist government of China against Japan in the Second Sino-Japanese War. The only unit to actually see combat was the 1st AVG, pop ...
of pilots and ground crew that operated within the
Chinese Air Force
The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF; ), also known as the Chinese Air Force (中国空军) or the People's Air Force (人民空军), is an Air force, aerial service branch of the People's Liberation Army, the regular army, regular ...
in 1941 and 1942 during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, were also paid in this currency .
See also
*
History of Chinese currency
The history of Chinese currency spans more than 3000 years. Currency of some type has been used in China since the Neolithic age which can be traced back to between 3000 and 4500 years ago. Cowry shells are believed to have been the earliest ...
*
Chinese yuan
The renminbi (; symbol: ¥; ISO code: CNY; abbreviation: RMB) is the official currency of the People's Republic of China and one of the world's most traded currencies, ranking as the fifth most traded currency in the world as of April 202 ...
*
Economy of China
The China, People's Republic of China has an upper middle income Developing country, developing Mixed economy, mixed socialist market economy that incorporates economic planning through Industrial policy, industrial policies and strategic Five- ...
*
Economic history of China (Pre-1911)
The economic history of China covers thousands of years and the region has undergone alternating cycles of prosperity and decline. China, for the last two millennia, was one of the world's largest and most advanced economies. Economic historians ...
*
Economic history of China
The economic history of China is covered in the following articles:
* Economic history of China before 1912, the economic history of China during the ancient China and imperial China, before the establishment of the Republic of China in 1912.
** E ...