Several local industry reports suggest that China could be all set to introduce its Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP) in the market by May 2020. It will initially test the use of digital currencies among its state employees.
While major economies across the globe are struggling to keep things afloat, China is gearing up its digital currency plans. As per the latest industry reports, the central bank digital currency (CBDC) – Digital Yuan – will go live in China by the next month of May.
Officially, China refers to its CBDC project as the digital currency/electronic payment (DCEP). Local news publication China Star Market recently reported that Chinese administration plans to release Digital Yuan for its state employees next month. However, it will be a test pilot of using the DCEP for state employees’ transportation allowances. In addition, China will also be testing the use of its DCEP for paying salaries to its state employees.
Besides, China’s four major banks – China Construction Bank, Bank of China, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the Agricultural Bank of China – will be responsible for issuing the CBDC. But before proceeding with their operations, all these banks will also sign a digital currency distribution agreement by the end of April.
More Evidence on Digital Yuan Project in China
Earlier this week, local sources released a screenshot of an online wallet developed by the Agricultural Bank of China that depicts the use of the Digital Yuan. Ling Zhang, executive director of M&A, Binance, shared the images on her Twitter handle. Later, the same was retweeted by Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao.
https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1250234759076147200?s=20
As per the tweet, China is currently testing its CBDC if four cities including Shenzhen, Chengdu, Suzhou, and Xiongan. Xiongan is basically a new metropolis developed by China on the outskirts of Beijing city dubbed as the “smart city brain project”.
The Xiongan will have state-of-the-art infrastructure catering to some of the next-generation technologies. This includes a 5G network, satellite information services, sensor recognition, and big data facilities. The city has also seen recent participation from China’s tech giants like Alibaba, Baidu, Tencent, and JD.com.
Analysts from the crypto space are praising China’s execution capabilities in rolling out its digital currency project. Speaking to Decrypt, Matthew Graham, CEO of Sino Global Capital, said:
“As we understand it, the DCEP project has reached the next phase of testing. Specifically, the testing is with the Agricultural Bank of China, and we are told in four pilot regions.”
Graham took a dig at the U.S. which has been since long contemplating working on their own digital currency. He said: “Americans still trying to figure out if they should put on a face mask while China pushes out a revolutionary technology.”
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