China digital currency: Beijing forum promotes SIM-based ‘e-CNY hard wallet’ as an alternative for mobile payments
- The SIM card was launched in July by Bank of China, China Telecom and China Unicom
- Bank of China says the ‘e-CNY hard wallet’ has several advantages as a payment mechanism, including safety, reliability and convenience
Chinese mobile carriers China Telecom and China Unicom, and the Bank of China, are promoting a hardware version of the country’s digital currency – a SIM-based e-CNY payment service – as an alternative to existing mobile payment apps.
With China’s central bank digital currency research arm struggling to persuade consumers to use the official e-CNY app or digital currency wallet embedded in mobile apps, the SIM card-based payment was promoted at a conference in Beijing on Thursday as a good alternative.
The two carriers and the Bank of China highlighted that the SIM card wallet can enable payment without an internet connection or even battery power. The “e-CNY hard wallet” was one of the key products promoted at the 2023 China Digital Finance Forum.
The SIM card was launched in July by Bank of China and the two mobile carriers. The application has been tested in several consumer-facing scenarios, including subways and universities, and in a few Chinese cities.
For example, in the subway stations of Qingdao in eastern Shandong province and Suzhou in Jiangsu province, people with e-CNY accounts and SIM cards in their phones can pay their metro fares with a tap of their phone, and such payments can even be made when the phone has no internet connection or power.
