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Hong Kong, the People’s Bank of China’s (PBoC) central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan, has launched a pilot program. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s (HKMA) initiation of the digital yuan or e-CNY pilot marks the first deployment of the CBDC outside mainland China. The pilot program will allow Hong Kong residents to facilitate transactions through 17 banks using the Fast Payment System (FPS) from their e-CNY wallets.
Hong Kong’s CBDC Initiative
This process, according to the HKMA’s announcement on May 17, marks the first integration of the system with a CBDC through a major central bank. The interoperability infrastructure between FPS and e-CNY is facilitated by the Digital Currency Institute (DCI), aiming to enhance cross-border payments, one of the main goals on the G20 countries’ roadmap.
Similar to blockchain protocols, the e-CNY pilot can also facilitate 24/7 payments. According to HKMA’s Chief Executive Eddie Yue, as HKMA and PBoC work to facilitate the adoption by more individual investors, the e-CNY application and wallet will gain more functionality. Yue shared the following in the announcement:
“By expanding the e-CNY pilot in Hong Kong and leveraging the 24/7 operating hours and real-time transfer advantages of FPS, users can now load their e-CNY wallets anytime, anywhere without needing to open a bank account. We are facilitating payment methods for Hong Kong residents.”
As of now, Hong Kong residents only need their mobile phone numbers to create an e-CNY wallet that can facilitate cross-border payments but cannot be used for person-to-person transactions. However, HKMA and DCI will continue to upgrade e-CNY wallets through real-name verification and will also facilitate corporate use cases for cross-border trade agreements in the future.
What’s Happening in the CBDC Field?
CBDCs promise greater financial inclusion, but some people worry about their potentially intrusive nature. In July 2023, the Central Bank of Brazil released the source code for its CBDC pilot, and it took only four days for people to notice the embedded surveillance and control mechanisms, which allowed the central bank to freeze or reduce user funds in CBDC wallets.
At least 140 countries worldwide are working on CBDC pilot programs, and China’s digital yuan is one of the most advanced. The People’s Bank of China aims to facilitate the greater use of the official currency Renminbi, especially in tourist areas across Hong Kong. Since the PBoC also stated that it aims to promote the commercial acceptance of CBDC, the launch of the digital yuan pilot could potentially support the use of the yuan in Hong Kong.
