UK Bank Takes Part in CBDC Trials in China

The China branch of British bank Standard Chartered is offering new B2B business services related to the country’s e-CNY central bank digital currency (CBDC). The bank announced on Monday that these include currency and redemptions operated by Citibank Clearing Service.

Standard Chartered is one of the first foreign banks to engage in the Chinese CBDC project. The country has the most advanced central banking initiative in the world.

The move comes after central bank official Li Xin launched a new renminbi B2B digital platform to improve cross-border operations, including order information matching and foreign exchange compliance.

China wants companies to increase e-CNY

The same event on Friday (24) was also hosted by Wu Gang, Vice President of the Central Bank Branch in Zhejiang Province. Try for Increase usage CBDC in Small and Medium Enterprises. In early 2023, DBS Singapore launched a pilot to test e-CNY transfer between merchants and customers on its own network.

President Xi Jinping has already favored a tokenized currency to challenge the US dollar in international trade. The idea gained strength in 2023 with new reports on the volatility of the US dollar’s dominance and its fiscal challenges.

An alternative trading currency was mentioned at a meeting of the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa in August.

CBDC can concentrate audit

So far, the People’s Bank of China has piloted its CBDC in 26 cities. At the end of June, these checks accounted for US$249.3 million in transactions.

In October, the foreign exchange regulator indicated that a programmable currency would help improve the implementation of monetary policy. The government can set an expiration date on money or set a limit on how much it can be spent.