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PBoC: Platforms Should Have Retail Payment Option for Digital Yuan CBDC
On Sunday, September 3, Changchun Mu, director of the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People’s Bank of China, emphasized the importance of wallet providers in enabling CBDC payment options across various retail settings. Mu’s comments come as China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan, undergoes technological and business model enhancements. Speaking at the annual China International Service Trade Fair on Sunday, Mu noted that the digital yuan has recently undergone significant upgrades in its organizational structure and business model. Thus, it’s now the time for payment tools to receive similar improvements.
Mu pointed out that commercial banking apps such as WeChat and Alipay have a responsibility to adhere to regulatory requirements. He suggested that in the immediate future, these platforms could prioritize the integration of QR codes for the central bank digital currency, while also planning for the long-term enhancement of their payment tools.
The official also addressed wholesale payments. Mu stated that there’s no necessity to entirely overhaul the existing interbank payment and settlement systems. Instead, integrating the CBDC payment option into these systems would suffice. However, Mu didn’t provide any specific technical details regarding this integration during the speech.
China’s Digital Yuan CBDC Push
The Chinese central bank has been undertaking every effort to push the use of its central bank digital currency – the Digital Yuan. China is persistently advancing its blockchain-based digital infrastructure, under strict regulatory oversight.
In August, Chinese government authorities introduced a novel blockchain-driven data exchange. Known as the Hangzhou Data Exchange, this initiative aims to enhance the efficient exchange of corporate information technology data by harnessing distributed ledger technology.
Earlier in July, Yi Gang, the governor of the People’s Bank of China, confirmed that the transaction volume of China’s CBDC, commonly known as the Digital Yuan, has reached an impressive $250 billion within a mere year and a half since the commencement of pilot tests.
In the same month, China’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC) officially endorsed the digital yuan for air ticket purchases, as per a blog post notice issued on July 18, 2023. In collaboration with China Merchants Bank (CMB), the CAAC is introducing a digital yuan payment platform named the “Civil Aviation Ticket Government Procurement Management Platform Application Digital RMB Settlement Mode”. This partnership, building upon previous collaborations, facilitates the use of digital currency for settling corporate airfare transactions and grants passengers access to innovative services through the platform.
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PBoC: Platforms Should Have Retail Payment Option for Digital Yuan CBDC