There are several banks near Peking University where you can set up a bank account after you have arrived in Beijing. If you are planning to convert foreign currencies into RMB, the banks in Beijing accept the foreign currencies of: Pound Sterling, American Dollar, Euro, Japanese Yen, Canadian Dollar, Australian Dollar, etc.
 

Bank of China: http://www.boc.cn/
 

Many banks in Beijing accept American Dollar Traveler's Checks; however, it takes more than 40 working days to process the checks.
 

If you are planning to wire-transfer funds/money to your Beijing bank account, do prepare some “on-hand” cash to cover the expenses needed for short-term housing, meals, etc. To be on a safe side, we recommend students you to carry the amount (of cash) that is enough to cover your monthly living expenses as it takes several working days for the money-transfer to be completed.
 

Our estimation for the average cost of living per month in Beijing is 6,000 RMB (housing, food and transportation included).
 

There are limitations to the cash you could draw daily with your credit card. Please confirm with your bank before you leave how much you could draw daily in China.