The currency of China is the renminbi or yuan (RMB), represented by the symbol 元. The renminbi has a long history dating back to coins used in the Han Dynasty over 2,000 years ago. Today, the 100 yuan banknote features portraits of four important figures from early Chinese history. To prevent fraud, Chinese banknotes use unique Chinese characters for numeric values rather than standard characters. In 2012, the exchange rate between the Chinese renminbi and U.S. dollar was approximately 1 USD to 6.35 CNY. Chinese traditions include giving "lucky money" in red envelopes during New Years celebrations and coins known as "ya sheng coins" for prosperity.