By the end of summer 2022, the cumulative volume of e-CNY transactions reached 100.04 billion yuan (about $14 billion), according to the People’s Bank of China.
For comparison, as of 2021 the indicator stood at 87.57 billion yuan (about $13.68 billion), with 261 million unique digital wallets registered.
During the reporting period, the number of transactions with CBDC in 15 provinces reached 360 million. The e-CNY was accepted by 5.6 million merchants.
The pilot also involves some government agencies.
“Numerous electronic government‑service platforms have opened services to process e-CNY receipts for utility bills, for tax refunds, monthly medical insurance settlements […] and so on,” the statement said.
In September 2022, media reported on expanding e-CNY testing to four provinces.
In April, former head of the People’s Bank of China Zhou Xiaochuan noted that the digital yuan is primarily intended for the public and merchants, and not to replace SWIFT or “turn the currency into a weapon.”
The former official added that for cross-border payments the e-CNY could be adapted in the future, but even then the CBDC would still be oriented toward retail users.
In March, U.S. Senator Pat Toomey stated about the threat of the digital yuan to national security.
Analysts at Deutsche Bank also suggested that the use of the e-CNY in foreign trade could undermine the dollar’s dominance.
Read ForkLog’s bitcoin news on our Telegram — cryptocurrency news, prices and analytics.