China’s CBDC Development is “Already On Track” and Nearing Completion: Ex-PBOC Governor

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Sujha Sundararajan

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November 28, 2023 11:58 EST

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Former Governor of China’s central bank PBOC is all optimistic about the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) nearing completion.

Speaking at a conference in Honng Kong on Monday, Zhou Xiaochuan, the 75-year Chinese economist, said that a ‘digital yuan’ is “already on track” and the “final stage is not very far away.”

“Ninety percent of retail payments in China are already digitalized. There is only 10 percent left to do.”

The significant stride from the ex-governor, comes days after the central bank released a white paper on cross-border e-CNY solution.

Zhou delivered the key-note address at the HKMA-BIS High-Level Conference, stressing the importance of digital currencies. He said that after China debuted on its CBDC in 2019, the project has seen high transactions and total value.

He highlighted challenges including mobility and convertibility of digital currencies, data protection and privacy issues, that the bank would deep-dive.

Zhao has been the longest-serving Governor of PBOC, with 16 years of tenure. His remarks on digital currencies and CBDC reflects China’s commitment towards digital payments innovation. Particularly at a time when other jurisdictions face increasing interest rates and rising inflation.

The conference was organized by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). Over 20 incumbent central bank governors, deputy governors and former governors attended the meeting. The current Governor of PBOC, Pan Gongsheng, also delivered a keynote speech on Tuesday.

Governors from financial institutions across the globe, including Australia, Spain, England and Thailand attended the event. Some of the topics discussed at the conference include financial stability, inflation and labor markets.

On Monday, the Chinese arm of the Standard Chartered Bank joined China’s digital yuan trials. The bank said that it is collaborating with City Bank Clearing Services to provide access to the CBDC’s interconnection platform.