China has taken another leap in developing its Digital Currency Electronic Payments [DECP]. On Monday, reports noted that Ant-backed MYbank will join the digital yuan trial as the central bank rolls out the electronic currency scheme.
MYbank will “steadily advance the trial pursuant to the overall arrangement of the People’s Bank of China.”
WeBank, which is backed by Tencent, will also be participating. The services offered by the two banks will soon be launched in the People’s Bank of China digital yuan app. The firm’s e-wallets will serve the same functions as those of the six state-owned lenders participating in the trial, as per reports. State-owned lenders included the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the Construction Bank of China, the Agricultural Bank of China and the Bank of China.
China started the trial of the DCEP a couple of months back and it was thought to be a move by the government to reclaim the $45 trillion [293 trillion yuan] payments industry from private payment giants like Alipay, Tencent, and WeChat Pay. However, it seems like China is expanding the role of DCEP and focusing on securing the payment networks for the use of the digital yuan.
Two weeks ago, the City of Beijing announced the release of 10 million digital yuan [$1.55 million] to locals. This step was taken to allow users to experience the use of the digital asset while also promoting its consumption during the Spring Festival.
With China working to facilitate the consumption of its digital yuan nationally and internationally, it could, after all, be the first to see and implement the idea ahead of other countries.
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