1 Cash – Hupeh Province

In 1906, the currency situation in Hubei (Hupeh) Province was a complex and chaotic reflection of China's wider monetary disintegration during the late Qing Dynasty. The province, a major commercial hub centered on Wuhan, operated with a bewildering multiplicity of currencies. These included silver sycee (measured in taels), foreign silver dollars (notably Mexican and later Japanese Yen), and a vast array of copper cash coins, both genuine and debased. Furthermore, Hubei was a pioneer in minting modern coinage; the Wuchang Mint, established by Governor-General Zhang Zhidong in the 1890s, produced both silver and copper coins. However, these new "dragon dollars" and copper "ten-cash" coins circulated alongside older forms, creating layers of exchange rather than replacing them.

A critical problem was the lack of a standardized unit of account. Transactions were negotiated in three separate systems: taels of silver (often the Hankow tael for trade), silver dollars, and strings of copper cash. Exchange rates between these systems fluctuated daily based on market conditions, supply, and the intrinsic metal value of the coins, causing immense inconvenience and risk for merchants and peasants alike. The situation was exacerbated by the widespread circulation of privately minted, inferior copper cash and notes, as well as notes issued by native banks (qianzhuang), leading to frequent counterfeiting and localized inflation.

This monetary disorder directly hampered trade, tax collection, and modernization efforts. Governor-General Zhang Zhidong had attempted reform, but by 1906, the provincial currency system remained fragmented. The Qing court in Beijing was beginning to discuss centralized monetary reform, yet Hubei's experience highlighted the profound challenges: competing metallic standards, provincial autonomy in minting, and the deep-seated public distrust of unified paper currency. Thus, in 1906, Hubei stood as a microcosm of imperial China's economic fragility on the eve of its collapse.