A Chinese state bank intends to connect the digital yuan with “the world’s largest small commodities market” via its payment platform, and People’s Daily noted that this international use of the central bank digital currency (CBDC) comes as a result of the efforts of the Yiwu City Council and the Bank of China - It is a leading commercial bank that is majority owned by the Chinese government and is considered the fourth largest financial institution in the world - not to be confused with the People's Bank of China. Futian District, in the city of Yiwu, Zhejiang Province, contains a 7-kilometre-long market, allowing thousands of vendors to sell “small” goods to importers from all over the world.
This Bank of China deal provides for the addition of digital yuan interoperability options to the Yiwu Pay payment platform. Yiwu City launched this “global payment platform” earlier this year, claiming that it can provide services to “100 countries and regions.” The platform also features complete... Payments are made using 16 banking currencies, thus allowing customers and sellers to complete international payments and receipts.
These developments provide merchants with a solution to complete “international payments” using the digital yuan in a manner that complies with the laws regulating “international capital circulation,” for digital Chinese yuan users, in addition to complying with a set of foreign exchange protocols. The bank said this solution has been “successfully implemented” by some merchants in Yiwu City.
The Chinese digital yuan is achieving developments at the international level
This milestone comes months after Yiwu announced that 90% of its vendors accept digital yuan payments, and stated that its market - as a whole - aims to process $1.5 billion worth of central bank digital currency (CBDC) transactions before the end of the year.
Unofficially known as the “Small Goods Capital of the World,” Yiwu manufactures and sells goods such as clothing, toys, household items, smartphone accessories and jewelry, and has established business relationships with more than 230 countries and regions around the world.
Futian Market is still very popular among tourists on the ground, but in recent years the city has sought to expand its presence online, offering its goods to many customers of major global e-commerce platforms. Chinese banks have also intensified their efforts in recent months to highlight the name of the digital yuan among international payment methods.
