The fifth series of the renminbi is the current coin and banknote series of the Chinese currency, the renminbi. They were progressively introduced since 1999 and consist of ¥0.1, ¥0.5, and ¥1 coins, and ¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥20, ¥50, ¥100 notes. The ¥20 banknote is a new denomination, and was added in this series. All banknotes in this series feature a portrait of Chinese Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong by artist Liu Wenxi.[1] Therefore, this series of banknotes is also known as "Grandpa Mao" (zh|毛爷爷) among the people.[2]
Coins of the first edition replace all 3 values from the previous series, namely ¥0.1, ¥0.5, and ¥1. The Emblem of the People's Republic of China of the previous series has been removed and the title of the state has been replaced by "People's Bank of China". The 1 jiao (¥0.1) coin also shrank in size.
The first edition includes the following coins:
| 5th Series Coins, First (1999) Edition[3] | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Value | Technical parameters | Description | Date of | ||||||
| Diameter | Composition | Edge | Obverse | Reverse | year | issue | withdrawal | ||||
| 1 jiao (¥0.1) | 19 mm | Aluminium alloy | Plain | Bank title, value, year of minting | Orchid, with pinyin bank title | 1999-2005 | 2000-10-16 | Current | |||
| 5 jiao (¥0.5) | 20.5 mm | Copper alloy-plated steel | Alternating betweenreeded and smooth | Bank title, value, year of minting | Lotus, with pinyin bank title | 2002-2018 | 2002-11-18 | Current | |||
| ¥1 | 25 mm | Nickel-plated steel | "RMB" repeated 3 times | Bank title, value, year of minting | Chrysanthemum, with pinyin bank title | 1999-2018 | 2000-10-16 | Current | |||
The first edition includes the following banknotes:
| 5th Series Banknotes, First (1999) Edition[4] | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Value | Dimensions | Main Colour | Description | Date of | ||||||
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | Watermark | printing | issue | withdrawal | ||||
| ¥1 1 | 130 × 63 mm | Yellow-green | Mao Zedong and Orchid | Three Pools Mirroring the Moon at West Lake | Orchid | 1999 | July 30, 2004 | Current | |||
| ¥5 | 135 × 63 mm | Purple | Mao Zedong and Narcissus | Mount Tai | Narcissus | November 18, 2002 | Limited | ||||
| ¥10 | 140 × 70 mm | Blue | Mao Zedong and Rose | Three Gorges of the Yangtze River | Rose | September 1, 2001 | |||||
| ¥20 | 145 × 70 mm | Brown | Mao Zedong and Lotus | Scenery of Guilin | Lotus | October 16, 2000 | |||||
| ¥50 | 150 × 70 mm | Green | Mao Zedong and Chrysanthemum | Potala Palace | Mao Zedong | September 1, 2001 | |||||
| ¥100 | 155 × 77 mm | Red | Mao Zedong and Prunus mume | Great Hall of the People | October 1, 1999 | ||||||
The new banknotes incorporate several measures to foil counterfeiting, including watermarks and inks that fluoresce under ultraviolet light. All but the ¥1 banknote have a metallic strip, and the ¥50 and ¥100 banknotes also feature numbers which change colour when viewed from different angles. The portrayals of different leaders on the ¥100 banknote, and of different nationalities of China, represented by two people in ethnic dress on the front of previous banknotes, have also been uniformly replaced with the image of Chinese Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong.
Those 1999 banknotes except the ¥1 were partly withdrawn since April 1, 2018 due to high quality counterfeits notes in circulation.
The 2005 edition was introduced on August 31, 2005, with the following banknotes and coins:
There is no difference in the basic color and design between the banknotes of the 1999 and 2005 edition. However, new security (anti-counterfeit) features are added in the 2005 edition that distinguishes the two. The differences as compared to the 1999 edition are:
The material of the new ¥0.1 coin is stainless steel, rather than duralumin (an aluminum alloy).
The second edition includes the following coin:
The second edition includes the following banknotes:
| 5th Series Banknotes, Second (2005) Edition | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Value | Dimensions | Main Colour | Description | Date of | ||||||
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | Watermark | printing | issue | withdrawal | ||||
| ¥5 | 135 × 63 mm | Purple | Mao Zedong and Narcissus | Mount Tai | Narcissus | 2005 | August 31, 2005 | Current | |||
| ¥10 | 140 × 70 mm | Blue | Mao Zedong and Rose | Three Gorges of the Yangtze River | Rose | ||||||
| ¥20 | 145 × 70 mm | Brown | Mao Zedong and Lotus | Scenery of Guilin | Lotus | ||||||
| ¥50 | 150 × 70 mm | Green | Mao Zedong and Chrysanthemum | Potala Palace | Mao Zedong | ||||||
| ¥100 | 155 × 77 mm | Red | Mao Zedong and Prunus mume | Great Hall of the People | |||||||
A new 2015 edition was introduced on November 12, 2015, for the ¥100 banknote. The new edition includes:[5] [6] [7] [8]
The new 2019 edition of the fifth series of the renminbi was introduced on April 29, 2019, and was issued into general circulation on August 30, 2019, with the following banknotes and coins:
A new 2020 edition was also introduced on July 8, 2020, for the ¥5 banknote, and was issued into general circulation on November 5, 2020.
The new design is similar to the banknotes of the 1999 and 2005 edition, with some changes made to the printing patterns of both bills and coins. Officials at the People's Bank of China also told the press that the latest issuance does not include a new 5-yuan note, which is being tested for new printing technologies in a bid to reduce counterfeiting of the Chinese currency.[9]
The new ¥1 coin has been narrowed into 22.25 mm, 2.75 mm less than before. Also, the new ¥0.5 coin contains eight isometric serrations with the coin's color becoming nickel instead of golden yellow inside, and the inner edge of the coin is changed into a polygon from circle.
The third edition includes the following coins:
| 5th Series Coins, Third (2019) Edition | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Value | Technical parameters | Description | Date of | ||||||
| Diameter | Composition | Edge | Obverse | Reverse | year | issue | withdrawal | ||||
| 1 jiao (¥0.1) | 19 mm | Stainless steel | Plain | Bank title, value, year of minting | Orchid, with Pinyin of bank title | 2019- | 2019-08-30 | Current | |||
| 5 jiao (¥0.5) | 20.5 mm | Nickel-plated steel | Reeded | Bank title, value, year of minting | Lotus, with Pinyin of bank title | ||||||
| ¥1 | 22.25 mm | "RMB" repeated 3 times | Bank title, value, year of minting | Chrysanthemum, with Pinyin of bank title | |||||||
The third edition includes the following banknotes:
| 5th Series Banknotes, Third (2015, 2019, 2020) Edition | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Value | Dimensions | Main Colour | Description | Date of | |||||
| Obverse | Reverse | Watermark | printing | issue | withdrawal | ||||||
| ¥1 | 130 × 63 mm | Yellow-green | Mao Zedong and Orchid | Three Pools Mirroring the Moon at West Lake | Orchid | 2019 | August 30, 2019 | Current | |||
| ¥5 | 135 × 63 mm | Purple | Mao Zedong and Narcissus | Mount Tai | Narcissus | 2020 | November 5, 2020 | ||||
| ¥10 | 140 × 70 mm | Blue | Mao Zedong and Rose | Three Gorges of the Yangtze River | Rose | 2019 | August 30, 2019 | ||||
| ¥20 | 145 × 70 mm | Brown | Mao Zedong and Lotus | Scenery of Guilin | Lotus | ||||||
| ¥50 | 150 × 70 mm | Green | Mao Zedong and Chrysanthemum | Potala Palace | Mao Zedong | ||||||
| ¥100 | 155 × 77 mm | Red | Mao Zedong and Prunus mume | Great Hall of the People | 2015 | November 12, 2015 | |||||