In the 2022 Financial Statistics Report (1), the People's Bank of China (PBoC) disclosed the most recent information regarding the number of digital yuan in circulation.
When China calculated the total amount of currency in use in December for the first time, they took into account the digital yuan for the first time. This is crucial for the nation and the early majority of the digital money issued by the central bank.
Additionally, history will acknowledge China as one of the first governments to build its own digital money and issue it through its central bank. Further, the nation carried out preliminary tests and trials in preparation for introducing its digital yuan.
It is steadily expanding its use and uptake, and it has recently introduced e-CNY payments for use on public transportation.
As of August 2022, the option to pay for public transportation with digital yuan was already offered in Beijing, Ningbo, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and several other cities. Chengdu was the first city in China to implement digital yuan payments throughout all of its public transportation systems.
Residents were required to pay fares to ride public transportation, such as buses and subways, and Beijing and Suzhou came in second and third, respectively, after Chengdu.
In Beijing, e-CNY payments are now accepted on all 24 of the city's subway lines and four of the city's suburban railway lines. In Guangzhou, citizens can pay with digital yuan on 10 of the city's transit routes.
China Started Circulating its CDBC e-CNY
In the 2022 Financial Statistics Report, the People's Bank of China (PBoC) disclosed the most recent information regarding the number of digital yuan in circulation.
"The amount of e-CNY in circulation has been included in the amount of currency currently in circulation (M0), effective as of December 2022."
According to the report, the digital yuan circulating in China at the end of December was 13.6 billion yuan, equivalent to $2.0 billion. The total amount of cash and bank reserves held by the banking institution climbed to 10.5 trillion yuan in December, a 15.3% increase over the previous 11 months.
Notably, the yuan only accounts for 0/13% of the total. The digital yuan that was reportedly used in circulation did not result in "notable changes to month-end M1 or M2 growth rates of 2022," as stated by the China Central Bank.
The People's Bank of China (PBoC) encouraged the usage of digital yuan in China, contributing to the total amount of circulating money. The bank thinks that the CBDC can be utilized to facilitate economic growth in the surrounding areas. Several towns have also implemented digital currency for various uses to make the vision a reality.
For instance, Shenzhen was one of the first cities in China to make it possible for people to pay municipal taxes and fees using the electronic version of the Chinese currency (e-CNY). In addition, the city gave thirty million digital yen to increase consumer spending.
The Bank of International Settlement published a report in October indicating that the digital yuan used in China was the most prevalent form of digital currency. In the CBDC trial that took place across borders, the e-CNY was the token that was most actively exchanged.
To pilot cross-border transactions in CBDCs, a test that lasted for six weeks was carried out. In addition to the People's Bank of China (PBOC), participants in this effort include the central banks of Thailand, Hong Kong, and the United Arab Emirates.
