The second series of Renminbi banknotes was introduced on March 1, 1955 (but dated 1953). Together with the introduction of the second series, the decimal point was moved 4 places to the left. As a result, one first series ÃÂ¥10,000 note is equivalent to one second series ÃÂ¥1 note.
Though rarely used, coins of the 2nd series can still be used in the People's Republic of China.
Each note has the words "People's Bank of China" as well as the denomination in Uyghur, Tibetan and Mongolian on the back. However, Zhuang was not included as the Zhuang alphabet had not been invented yet. Those four languages have all since appeared on each new series of renminbi banknotes.
The denominations available were:
The ÃÂ¥0.01, ÃÂ¥0.02, and ÃÂ¥0.05 notes of the 1981 edition can also be argued as members of the third series of the renminbi due to being first issued in 1981, when the third series of the renminbi was also being issued.
The ÃÂ¥3, ÃÂ¥5, and ÃÂ¥10 notes of the 1955 edition were printed in the Soviet Union. As a result of the Sino-Soviet split, the Soviets started printing these banknotes as counterfeits as a part of economic warfare against China. Thus, such counterfeit notes were found in Xinjiang after several border conflicts. The use of the 1955 edition banknotes was halted on April 15, 1964, and they were completely withdrawn and recalled on May 15, 1964.
The second series of the renminbi is the only series of the renminbi to include a ÃÂ¥3 banknote.
Except for the ÃÂ¥0.01, ÃÂ¥0.02, ÃÂ¥0.05, ÃÂ¥3, ÃÂ¥5, and ÃÂ¥10 banknotes of the 1955 edition, all banknotes were completely recalled on January 1, 1999. The use of the ÃÂ¥0.01, ÃÂ¥0.02, and ÃÂ¥0.05 banknotes of the 1955 edition was halted on July 1, 2003, and they were completely withdrawn and recalled on April 1, 2007.