Former Site of Rishengchang (China Ticket Number Museum)

Former Site of Rishengchang (China Ticket Number Museum)

The Former Site of Rishengchang (China Ticket Number Museum) is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction and a key cultural relic protection unit in China.

Rishengchang Ticket Number was situated on the bustling section of West Street, known as the "First Financial Street of the Qing Dynasty," in the ancient city of Pingyao. Founded in 1823, it was China’s first ticket number—arguably the country’s first bank. At its peak, its branches spanned nearly the entire nation. Today, Rishengchang has become the China Ticket Number Museum, preserving some of the physical materials used during its operations and showcasing the glorious history of ancient Chinese banking.

Former Site of Rishengchang

Former Site of Rishengchang

The predecessor of Rishengchang Ticket Number was the "Xiyucheng Pigment Shop," headquartered in Pingyao with a branch outside Chongwenmen in Beijing. By the end of the Jiaqing era (1796–1820) of the Qing Dynasty, the volume of currency circulation between regions had increased significantly, and the traditional method of transporting silver was no longer safe or suitable for the new circumstances. Xiyucheng Pigment Shop pioneered the practice of remittance between Beijing and Shanxi, which proved highly effective, leading to the addition of remittance services to its business. In the early years of the Daoguang era (1821–1850) of the Qing Dynasty, Xiyucheng Pigment Shop was officially renamed Rishengchang Ticket Number.

Rishengchang Ticket Number

The courtyard of Rishengchang is divided into three sections: the front courtyard served as the business hall, the middle courtyard as the internal office area, and the rear courtyard as the living quarters. The general visiting route involves simply walking from the main entrance deeper into the courtyards. The first section, the front courtyard, housed the counters and accounting offices; the second section (middle courtyard) had three guest rooms on both the east and west sides, with the central hall at the front serving as the remittance business room. Adjacent to the south eaves of the central hall were the living quarters for the clerks. Upon entering the rear courtyard, you’ll find several guest rooms that were reserved for distinguished guests and senior staff. To the west of the senior staff quarters, a corridor led to the horse carriage area, with the adjacent stable and groom’s quarters.

The entire Rishengchang compound features high walls and a compact layout. For security, iron wire nets with bells were installed overhead. Once the five sturdy street-facing doors were closed, the compound became extremely secure. The various ticket numbers in the ancient city of Pingyao—including Rishengchang—gained fame both domestically and internationally due to their early establishment, long operation, large number of institutions, wide distribution of branches, and are considered important milestones in the history of China’s financial development.

Historically, there were 51 ticket numbers nationwide, 43 of which were in Shanxi, and 22 of those were located in the small yet vibrant city of Pingyao. China’s first ticket number—Rishengchang—was born on West Street in Pingyao County. Today, let us step into this museum that records the glorious history of an era of ticket merchants, lift the veil of history, and witness its former splendor.

A ticket number was a private financial institution specializing in the remittance and deposit/loan services of silver. Rishengchang Ticket Number was the first private bank in Chinese history and the precursor to all modern banks.

Today, the Rishengchang Ticket Number Museum we are visiting covers a total area of 1,604 m² and is divided into three courtyards. The front courtyard served as the business hall, the middle courtyard as the internal office area, and the rear courtyard as the living quarters. Don’t underestimate this compound—it was the central hub controlling all branches across the nation for Rishengchang in Pingyao. As the head office, it issued directives, while the branches, under its command, earned continuous profits that flowed back here.

Over its more than 100 years of operation, Rishengchang Ticket Number consistently adhered to the business philosophy of voluntary deposits, free withdrawals, and strict client confidentiality. At the time, there was a saying: “A single remittance note could be cashed anywhere in the world.” This not only attested to the prosperity and extensive reach of Rishengchang’s business but also demonstrated the rigorous anti-counterfeiting system of its remittance notes.

Remittance notes measured 1 chi 2 cun in length and 8 cun in width. A completed note would be folded in half and torn into two parts—one retained by the client and the other by the ticket number. The ticket number’s half was sent via government postal services to the designated branch where the client wished to withdraw funds. The client or their relative could then present the other half to claim the silver. The anti-counterfeiting measures included:

(1) Handwriting—remittance notes were written by designated personnel;

(2) Seals;

(3) Watermarks (with the “Rishengchang Ji” anti-counterfeit mark on all four corners);

(4) Chinese character ciphers (the most critical anti-counterfeiting measure);

Thanks to these anti-counterfeiting methods, Rishengchang Ticket Number never experienced a single case of mistaken or fraudulent withdrawal throughout its over century-long operation (for details on the Chinese character cipher, refer to the shop’s archives). Now, you might be most curious about the profitability of Rishengchang Ticket Number.

Rishengchang Ticket Number generated a total profit of 15 million taels of silver, equivalent to 10 billion RMB. This enormous profit mainly came from:

(1) 60% from remittance fees (charged at 1%);

(2) 20% from the interest margin between deposits and loans;

(3) A small portion from the interest difference between customer deposits and withdrawals;

(4) Pingse yuli (profit from differences in silver weight and purity). For example, exchanging 100 USD to RMB, then RMB to JPY, and then JPY back to USD would not yield the original 100 USD. Similarly, buying 5 kg of apples at once versus buying them in ten separate one-jin portions would show different weights. This is pingse yuli. At the time, the highest silver purity was Nanjing silver at 97.3%, and the lowest was Shanghai silver at 70%. Although ticket numbers had internal exchange rates for silver from different origins to compensate for purity differences, a 0.5% pingse yuli margin still existed—just from this, ticket numbers could earn 80,000 taels of silver in profit.

It can be said that the success of Rishengchang Ticket Number fully validates the ancient wisdom that “those who win people win prosperity.” Putting people first—maximizing employees’ potential and capabilities—was the most important lesson learned by Rishengchang’s management.

Now, we have arrived at the ticket number’s comprehensive office area—the command center for disseminating and receiving information. Offices such as the letter room and accounting room are located here. Let’s first learn about the letter room. Back then, the letter room was run by just four people—a model of lean efficiency and productivity. The head was called the “wendu,” and the other three were “luxin yuan” (letter recorders). The requirements for the wendu were as follows: they had to be a scholar from the imperial examination system. Their primary duty was to clearly and accurately convey the head manager’s intentions, business philosophy, and ideas to all branches. As a result, the wendu had an in-depth understanding of all aspects of the ticket number’s operations. To regulate their behavior, the ticket number only paid the wendu a salary (200 taels of silver per year) and did not allow them to participate in the ticket number’s operations or share in its profits. In reality, due to various factors, the wendu enjoyed a relatively stable position and was difficult to replace. So, did the other letter recorders have no chance of promotion? Not at all—that leads us to Rishengchang’s employee incentive system, which demonstrated remarkable ingenuity in tapping into employee potential.

You might think that although Rishengchang Ticket Number had branches across the nation, disparities in regional economic strength led to differences in living conditions and quality of life. Therefore, the ticket number stipulated that any employee willing to work at remote or harsh branches would receive a share of the profits—as a form of sweat equity—entitling them to annual dividends, provided their family remained at the head office. This allowed the ticket number to encourage ambitious employees to leave their hometowns and venture afar to carve out their own futures. Eager to establish themselves and fearing replacement by new employees, they worked diligently and responsibly, striving to develop versatile skills and take on multiple roles. This approach maximized talent utilization, minimized staffing needs, and truly achieved lean efficiency. Statistics show that Rishengchang had over 40 branches and 270 employees, yet generated a miraculous profit of 15 million taels of silver.

After seeing the letter room, let’s take a look at the accounting room. Once money was earned, how was it distributed? That was the job of the accountants. At the end of each year, the ticket number would report its full-year financial status to the accounting room, which would then compile detailed statistics and report them to the managers and owners. However, dividends were not distributed every year but once every four years—this was called “clearing the big accounts.” During dividend distribution, not all the money was paid out; a portion was retained as a risk reserve, referred to as “protective capital.” Dividends were allocated according to different shareholdings.

(1) Shares invested with silver were called "silver shares," which were heritable, equivalent to today's unlimited liability companies. That is, sons could inherit their fathers' shares, but in cases of bankruptcy, the sons would also bear their fathers' debts—hence the saying, "The father’s debts are repaid by the son, and the husband’s by the wife."

(2) Shares invested with labor were called "body shares," which were not heritable. Employees invested with their work ability, and labor bore no liability for compensation regarding shares. Moreover, there was no set retirement age for employees—if you were capable of doing the job, you could hold body shares.

(3) "Former body shares" meant that after the death of a person holding body shares, their descendants could enjoy three opportunities for dividend distribution. This rule was designed to prevent employees holding body shares from engaging in misconduct when nearing retirement. For example, after Lei Lvtai retired at age 78 and passed away at 79, his son was entitled to former body shares, allowing him to receive dividends on three occasions over 12 years.

It was precisely because of having such a group of business talents and a strict management system that Rishengchang Draft Bank achieved a virtuous cycle of development, standing strong in the business world for over 100 years and becoming the leader among the "Qi, Tai, and Ping" business factions.

Now we have arrived at the rear hall of the last courtyard of the draft bank. This was where banquets were held during festivals and holidays in the past. Interestingly, banquets at Rishengchang had quite specific etiquette. Take seating arrangements, for example—the seat directly facing the door was considered the host seat, with the left and right sides being the upper and second-upper seats, respectively. Every year after the "grand account settlement," the bosses of branch offices from various regions would gather here. Their respective business performances were tallied and announced by the accountants. The branches that made profits sat proudly and smugly facing the door, basking in glory, while those with poorer performance had to sit with their backs to the door, looking utterly ashamed. There was even a dish served during the banquet called "the fish head points to whom, that person will be dismissed." It was these established customs and etiquettes, bit by bit, that seeped into Shanxi merchant culture, allowing us, their descendants, to more clearly understand the business acumen, life philosophies, and delicate emotional threads of our ancestors.

People often say: history is a mirror. Standing at the threshold of Rishengchang Draft Bank, we recall the past to reflect on the present, summarizing the successes and failures of our predecessors so that we do not repeat the same mistakes. Understanding their successes allows us to draw better lessons for today—and this is precisely the original intention behind establishing the Rishengchang Draft Bank Museum. Since opening 15 years ago, every visitor has contemplated anew before this mirror, marveling at the profound richness of Shanxi merchant culture. Finally, let us take a look together at this couplet inscribed by Chen Hao, the top imperial scholar of the 24th year of the Jiaqing reign in the Qing Dynasty, for Rishengchang:

The sun shines brightly at zenith, all treasures’ essence shines in splendor

Rising upon blessed land, wealth converges from all directions, uniquely splendid

This is a couplet with a hidden “昌” (prosperity) character formed by two “日” (sun) characters. It has a history of 170 years. (The two “日” form “昌”) This is the premier financial street—the West Street of Pingyao. This is the No. 1 in the world—the Rishengchang Draft Bank.

Address: No. 38, West Street, Pingyao County, Jinzhong City

Type: Historical Site Museum

Rating: AAAA

Recommended Visit Duration: About 1 hour

Phone: 0354-5683261; 0354-5868113

Opening Hours:

Peak Season: 8:00–18:30; Off-Peak Season: 8:00–17:30

Ticket Information:

No separate ticket required. Included in the Pingyao Ancient City admission ticket

Gutao Town: Gutao Town is the seat of the Pingyao County government. Located at the southern end of the Taiyuan Basin, it borders Qi County to the east, Wenxi County to the north, Fenyang to the west, and Jiexiu to the southwest. Pingyao Ancient City lies to the south of Qinyuan, and to the southeast it neighbors Qinxian and Wuxiang. It is the political, economic, and cultural center of the county, and the World Cultural Heritage site—Pingyao Ancient City—is situated in the central part of our town. It is one of the most dynamic and economically robust towns in Pingyao County. To the south, it borders Yebi Township and Duan Village Town; to the west, it neighbors Zhongdu Township; to the north, it connects with Nan Zheng Township; and to the east, it adjoins Yebi Township and Hongshan Town. The Gutao Town government is located in Xicheng Village, governing Dongcheng, Xicheng, Nancheng, ... More detailed information about Gutao Town++

Further Reading:

· China National Third-Class Museum

· Sixth Batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level