A store owner in Dongguan was given 15 notes with same serial number, HD90268566, on January 1. The fakes are hard to identify with the naked eye. Similar notes have also been found in other places such as Fujian, Zhejiang and Sichuan, Nanfang Daily reports.

The nine provinces in which suspected fake 100-yuan notes have been found are: Hunan, Hubei, Guangdong, Guangxi, Zhejiang, Sichuan, Fujian, Henan and Shandong.

The fake note serial number often begins with HD90.

The fake note serial number often begins with HD90. The subject is now a hot topic on the Internet.

High-quality counterfeit 100-yuan notes with serial numbers beginning with HD90.

One victim, a Mr. Zhang, tells his story about the fake notes: in the evening of January 1, one of his staff got a cell phone call from a man who claimed to be the manager of a hotel and who needed to buy goods valued at more than 1500 yuan. When the sales clerk reached the hotel, the man asked to do the deal outside the hotel ¨C at a crossroads, in fact. The man paid with 15 new 100-yuan notes and disappeared.

In the dim light the shopkeeper did not notice anything wrong with the money at the time, but realized there was a problem immediately on returning to the shop. He ran straight back to the hotel in search of the man, but the hotel told him that no one had ordered any goods, and the man's phone had been switched off.

These 15 fake notes, with the same serial number ¨C HD90268566, are convincing to the touch, and the watermark and colours seem to be accurate.

Police from Fenggang Public Security Bureau remind the public that they can check at bank outlets if they are concerned about the authenticity of bank notes. If a fake note is identified, please call 110 immediately.

Many local banks have indicated that they have had no complaints concerning an influx into the Pearl River Delta, but last year Chongqing warned banks to upgrade counters and ATM cash registers.

"Emergency" warnings are spreading on QQ and websites, claiming the fake notes are flowing into Guangdong. Nanfang Daily has also received many recent calls saying fake 100-yuan notes whose serial number begins with HD90 and HB90 are being used in taxis or night markets.

One reader, a Mr. Liu, recounts how his friend paid money to a taxi driver but was asked by the driver to change the note he offered. Later the passenger realized that the note he had been given back was not his original one, but a fake note with a serial number beginning with HB90. A Dongcheng vegetable seller was also cheated by such note. She said it felt genuine when she touched the note under faint light.

Recently, HD 90 notes have been a hot topic on Internet. Some bloggers have issued warnings about them, while others try to sell them openly. One blogger at sina.com offers fake notes with face values from 5 to 100 yuan for purchase. The 100 yuan note with serial number beginning with HD90 or HB90 sells at 18 yuan, the 50 yuan note with serial number beginning with FA17 sells at 12 yuan, and the 20 yuan note with serial number beginning with FC3358 sells at 7 yuan.

According to the blogger who called himself "Brother Jian", the goods were shipped from Taiwan and are currently stored in Zhejiang. He also told Nanfang Daily reporter that the HB90 is of relatively poor quality with a blurred water mark, while the HD90 is much better. "Brother Jian" claimed he had plenty of notes available, and a good reputation. He suggested the reporter buy some 100 yuan notes to try them out at a discounted price of 15 yuan. He also promised that the fake notes would be delivered after the money was sent to him.

According to South East Satellite TV reports, a Taiwanese RMB counterfeiting group was smashed on October 8 last year, with six Taiwanese arrested and fake notes recovered with a face value of more than 100 million yuan. Police revealed that the notes could not be identified by currency detectors. Sources said the factory has been operating for some time, smuggling their notes by sea to mainland and possibly into Hong Kong through the Pearl River Delta.

Taiwanese police claim that fake notes are being sold in Taiwan, that many have been smuggled into Guangdong by ship, and that some are believed to have flowed into Hong Kong and Macao. According to media reports, Taiwan's counterfeiting technology is the best in the world. On August 20 last year Taipei police discovered the most sophisticated counterfeiting factory ever found in Taiwan, with finished and semi-finished US$100 bills whose printing technology shocked the United States.

Last October, Chongqing business management office, under the People's Bank of China, instructed Chongqing banks in writing to take preventive measures against fake notes. The notice says, "Recently, financial institutions have found 2005 edition 100-yuan notes whose serial number begins with HD9026. These are of high quality and can pass through some currency detectors."

The notice also says: "Users should contact currency detector manufacturers as soon as they discover that the equipment cannot identify the fake notes, and upgrade their devices. ATM's should also be checked if it is apparent that the machinery cannot identify the fake notes."

But some banks in Dongguan, Guangdong, said Tuesday that they knew nothing about the fake notes and that no complaints had been received. Dongguan Financial Office explained that the Central Bank is in charge of currency circulation. The People's Bank of China said that it has no news or information concerning the problem, adding that it would not rely only on Internet rumors but it would investigate if necessary.

But according to National Business Daily, following the heated rumors circulating on the Internet the headquarters of the People's Bank of China (POBC) Shanghai Branch is investigating the matter and waiting for responses from the relevant departments on the issue. It has also communicated with relevant business segments.

Many commercial banks, such as the Industrial Commercial Bank of China and the China Merchants Bank, said that to date they have received no formal notice from the People's Bank of China (POBC) or the China Banking Regulatory Commission, nor have they heard of any cases or received any complaints.