Huàn wàihùi – Exchanging currency

It is possible to exchange Chinese yuan outside of China, but you just might end up in a situation, where you need some more cash while staying in China. International credit cards have found their way to China already some time ago, but in many smaller shops and street vendors' desks, especially outside the big cities, you should not count on getting by with just plastic money. Better to keep some cash in your wallet and rehearse the basics of currency exchange terminology.

The easiest way to change money is in the lobby of an international hotel, but if that is not an option for you, just head for the closest bank, yínháng. Once you have made your way to the bank, declare to the bank clerk that “I wish to exchange currency”, Wŏ yào huàn wàihùi. Then you can show your bank notes, as to prove which foreign currency you are about to change, but it might also make a good impression if you can chat about your euros and dollars in Chinese. A euro is called ōuyuán in Chinese, and the US dollar is mĕiyuán. You can also replace all these currency terms by simply saying “money,” qián. Wŏ yào huàn qián = "I want to change money."

There is lots of fake money circulating in China, so it is wise to exchange currency in banks only.

The Chinese yuan comes in 100, 50, 20, 10, 5 and 1 yuan notes.

The international abbreviation for the Chinese yuan is CNY, but locally it is more commonly known as rénmínbì (RMB), or “people's money”. Rénmínbì is used all over China, including Hong Kong, where they also use the Hong Kong dollar (HKD).

Vocabulary

yínháng 银行 bank
Wŏ yào huàn qián 我要换钱 I want to change money
Wŏ yào huàn wàihùi 我要换外汇 I want to exchange currency
xìnyòng kă 信用卡 credit card
lǚxíng zhīpiào 旅行支票 traveler's checks

Names of some currencies

ōuyuán 欧元 euro
mĕiyuán 美元 US dollar
yīngbàng 英镑 English pound
lúbù 卢布 ruble
kèláng 克锒 crown
Ruìdiăn kèláng 瑞典克锒 Swedish crown
Dānmài kèláng 丹麦克锒 Danish crown
rìyuán 日元 Japanese yen
táibì 台币 Taiwan dollar
găngbì 港币 Hong Kong dollar