China to Phase Out One-Yuan Notes, Replace with Coins

You know when you go to Shanghai and you come back with a pocket full of coins because all the stores and taxi drivers give you change in coins rather than bills? Your whole life is about to become like that.

China will phase out the one-yuan note and replace it with one-yuan coins, in one of the worst currency decisions ever made. Coins are archaic, expensive, and heavy, and bank notes are none of those.

Spare a thought for every jianbing maker and every other person who deals in small value transactions. Instead of a drawer or cardboard box full of paper notes, now such vendors will have handfuls of coins to deal with. Enjoy that the next time you make your own change while someone whips up a kao leng mian for you.

Now, in addition to the five jiao, one jiao, and the coin so useless that even homeless people will not accept it, the one fen, we can add a greater quantity of one yuan coins. Even the Beijing Subway ticket vending machines have started giving change over RMB 5 in notes rather than a pile of coins like some slot machine of the damned.

A pilot project for the coin rollout is underway in Shandong province, although it's been underway in Shanghai for years and there's a reason it hasn't piloted anywhere beyond there. Yet another reason to get your WeChat Wallet or other cashless payment account up and running.

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