The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank, has already conducted pilot digital currency transactions (CBDC) worth 1.1B yuan (~ $ 162 million). That was announced by the deputy head of the NBK Fan Yifei at the virtual conference Sibos 2020 organized by SWIFT.
As of the end of August, 3.13 million digital currency transactions were processed, according to the South China Morning Post. Pilot transactions were conducted in cities such as Shenzhen and Xiong'an. Fan confirmed that the Central Bank plans to use the digital yuan already during sporting events at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
More than 6,700 digital yuan uses have already been tested, he said, including paying bills, transportation, and government services.
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The government has also used digital yuan to pay bonuses to healthcare professionals who have been treating coronavirus patients. “The NBK views the digital yuan as essential financial infrastructure,” Fan said. Over 113,300 personal and about 8,800 corporate digital wallets were opened as part of pilot transactions.
China began research on digital currencies in 2014, well ahead of other major economies, including the US and EU, which have only recently begun reporting on their initiatives. The European Central Bank released a report on the digital euro last week. The US Federal Reserve is also researching options for creating and launching the digital dollar.