Standard Chartered, the British multinational bank, is set to participate in trials of China's digital yuan, the e-CNY, making it one of the first foreign banks to engage in such testing within the country. Through its partner City Bank Clearing Services Co., Standard Chartered will enable its clients to purchase, exchange, and redeem e-CNY within their bank accounts. The bank will also join China's e-CNY CBDC pilot testing program, exploring applications in cross-border merchant payments, trade financing, and supply chain financing. This move reinforces Standard Chartered's commitment to the Chinese market and its optimism regarding the development of the digital renminbi.


In a significant development, Standard Chartered, the British multinational bank, has announced its participation in trials of China's digital yuan, known as the e-CNY. This makes Standard Chartered one of the first foreign banks to engage in testing the digital currency within the country. The initiative, facilitated through its partner City Bank Clearing Services Co., will allow Standard Chartered's clients to seamlessly purchase, exchange, and redeem e-CNY within their bank accounts.


Xiaolei Zhang, President of Standard Chartered China, expressed optimism about the prospects of the digital renminbi, highlighting the bank's 165-year history in the Chinese market. As part of its involvement in the trials, Standard Chartered will join China's e-CNY CBDC pilot testing program, which is currently underway in 26 cities and provinces. The bank's focus areas include exploring the use of e-CNY in cross-border merchant payments, trade financing, and supply chain financing.


This move builds on Standard Chartered's previous engagements in the digital currency space. In 2022, the bank participated in the "Multilateral Central Bank Digital Currency Bridge" proof-of-concept test project in Hong Kong, which aimed to provide cross-border payment settlement services for retail and enterprise clients. Additionally, in May 2023, Standard Chartered, in collaboration with PricewaterhouseCoopers China, released a report titled "Central Bank Digital Currency to Create a Future Banking Ecosystem," discussing the potential applications of CBDCs in retail, trade, and supply chain finance.


China's central bank recently published a white paper titled "A cross-border e-commerce business-to-business digital renminbi application solution," urging commercial payment processors to integrate the e-CNY CBDC for consumer transactions. Since its launch in 2020, e-CNY transactions have exceeded 1.8 trillion yuan ($253.6 billion), with the number of wallets surpassing 120 million. Standard Chartered's active participation in these trials reflects its commitment to embracing and exploring the evolving landscape of digital currencies, particularly within the Chinese market.


(ZHIYUAN SUN, COINTELEGRAPH, 2023)