China’s Xiong’an New Area Begins Using Digital Yuan for Salary Payments

The country is testing the currency in different pilots.

AccessTimeIconJun 14, 2021 at 2:03 p.m. UTC
Updated May 9, 2023 at 3:20 a.m. UTC
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China’s Xiong'an New Area, a district that is located about 60 miles southwest of Beijing and that serves as a testing ground for new economic ideas, has started using the digital yuan, a central bank digital currency (CBDC), to pay some workers.

  • In a statement Saturday, the Xiong’an government described the digital yuan pilot as the nation’s first “on-chain” payment being used for builders’ wages.
  • Xiong'an said the Shijiazhuang branch of the People's Bank of China (PBOC) and the reform and development bureau of Xiong’an’s management committee were involved in guiding and supporting the project.
  • The region is using the Blockchain Fund Payment Platform to pay the wages. 
  • China has been testing digital currency trading platforms in different regions and setting up a legal framework for a CBDC with global financial regulators. 
  • The PBOC has been working on trials of its digital yuan with commercial banks and payment providers
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