The Chinese currency is known as Renminbi (RMB) or
'people's money'. The basic unit of this currency is the Yuan. In spoken
Chinese, the word 'kuai' is almost always substituted for the word Yuan. Ten
Jiao (in spoken Chinese, pronounced 'mao') make up one Yuan. Ten Fen make up
one Jiao, but Fen are becoming rare because they are worth so little - some
people will not accept them.
RMB comes in paper notes issued in denominations of one, two, five, 10, 20,
50 and 100 Yuan; one, two and five Jiao; and one, two and five Fen. Coins
are in denominations of one Yuan; five Jiao; and one, two and five Fen.
In Tibet, the only
place to change foreign currency and travelers cheques is the Bank of China
and top-end hotels in Lhasa. Besides the advantage of safety, travelers'
cheques are useful to carry in Tibet because the exchange rate is higher (by
about 3%) than it is for cash. Credit cards are accepted only in the top-end
hotels and the Lhasa
central branch of the Bank of China, the only place in Tibet that provides
credit card advances.
The Chinese currency is known as Renminbi (RMB) or
'people's money'. The basic unit of this currency is the Yuan. In spoken
Chinese, the word 'kuai' is almost always substituted for the word Yuan. Ten
Jiao (in spoken Chinese, pronounced 'mao') make up one Yuan. Ten Fen make up
one Jiao, but Fen are becoming rare because they are worth so little - some
people will not accept them.