Insights

What Will Be the Impact of China’s State-Sponsored Digital Currency?

In April 2020, electronic Chinese yuan (e-CNY) pilot programs launched in four cities. The digital currency’s debut was the culmination of a six-year journey that began when China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), announced its research into a “Digital Currency/Electronic Payment” system in 2014. Today, although many critical details of the payment system remain opaque or undecided, e-CNY pilots are rapidly accelerating in scope and size.