E-CNY: HSBC, Standard Chartered jump on China’s digital currency bandwagon, joining pilot programme
- The China branches of Hang Seng Bank and Fubon Bank are also in the first batch of overseas banks to sign up
- They join more than 40 state-owned banks in launching their services on the e-CNY app, developed by the People’s Bank of China
Four foreign-funded banks including Standard Chartered and HSBC have jumped on China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) bandwagon, as financial institutions and regulators push to expand the use of the digital currency in domestic and cross-border payments.
The China branches of HSBC, Standard Chartered, Hang Seng Bank and Fubon Bank became the first overseas banks to participate in China’s CBDC pilot, the banks announced separately this week.
They join more than 40 state-owned banks in launching their services on the e-CNY app, developed by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC)’s Digital Currency Research Institute, a research team within the Chinese central bank dedicated to launching the sovereign digital currency, also known as the e-CNY.
Clients of the participating banks will be able to send and receive money using the e-CNY app, make payments both online and offline, and top up digital wallets by connecting them with an existing bank card or mobile banking account.
“As an important infrastructure for the digital economy, the e-CNY will enhance the payment and consumption experience and strengthen the connection between China and the international financial market,” said Jerry Zhang, executive vice-chairman and CEO at Standard Chartered China.
The e-CNY will see wider application in the future in areas such as merchant payments, trade finance and supply chain finance, Zhang said, adding that Standard Chartered will provide its services to retail and corporate customers with the goal of injecting “new momentum into the development of the real economy”.
