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Reverse of the 1 gold yen Bank of Chosen note. The Japanese circulated these notes widely in Manchuria, even though they were not specifically
designated as Chinese currency.
The Bank of Chosen maintained no fewer than sixteen
branches—all in northern China. Principal offices included
C’hang-chun, Harbin, Fuchiatien, Kirin, Manchuli and Tsitsihar.
Notes issued were based on the Japanese gold yen. The bank notes
were known to the Chinese as “laotou piao”, or old man money,
because of the elderly Korean gentleman depicted on the note’s
obverse. This bank ceased to exist after World War II.
The only French bank to operate during the Republican
regime in China (1911-1949) was the Credit Commercial Sino-
Français. That it was a Chinese-French joint venture bank there
is no doubt. It probably served French interests with the central
government inasmuch as its sole office was located in Peking.
From there it circulated a series of 1-, 5- and 10-yuan notes dated
1923. The reverse of each note carries the inscription “Société
Anonyme”, which translated means “limited company”, or “Ltd.”
Research on my part could uncover no additional information
relative to this bank.
Now we come to the Chinese Italian Banking Corporation,
which issued notes familiar to most collectors. This too was a
joint-venture bank which operated under the Chiang Kai Shek
republican regime — or did it? This is an open question, because
the only notes that have ever appeared on the market are unissued
remainders. The notes conspicuously carry no place of issue on
their reverse. So what is the story? Did the bank ever function as a
foreign bank in China? Did it have branch offices there, and if so,
where were they located? Or, were the notes prepared and never
used? The SCWPM states that the bank was organized in 1920
and reorganized three years later as the Italian Bank of China
— a bank which did not have authority to issue notes. No other
known references are available to shed light upon the subject. For
years I had assumed that, like the Park-Union Foreign Banking
Corporation, the notes were prepared in anticipation of the bank’s
doing business in China, and that for some reason plans changed
and the bank never opened.
France’s sole bank to operate in the Republic of China was the Credit Commercial Sino-Français. Its 1-yuan note of 1923 is shown here. Its note issue
must have been extremely small.
40 IBNS Journal 48.2