China’s central bank has released its digital currency wallet app ahead of the Winter Olympics. The wallet app for the digital yuan, also known as e-CNY, can now be downloaded from the iOS and Android app stores in the country.
The Digital Yuan Wallet app is now downloadable from the iOS and Android app stores
The central bank of China, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), has released a pilot version of its Central Bank Digital Currency Wallet (CBDC) app.
Developed by the PBOC Digital Currency Research Institute, the wallet app for e-CNY, also known as Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP), is now available for download in the iOS and Android app stores in China. Previously, the wallet app was only downloadable via private links. The app is free to use.
Mu Changchun, director of the PBOC Digital Currency Research Institute, said in November that around 140 million Chinese residents opened a digital yuan account by October 2021, with cumulative transactions reaching 62 billion yuan ($ 9.7 billion ) since launch.
PBOC Governor Yi Gang said in November that China would continue to advance the development of its central bank digital currency and improve its design and usage, including increasing its interoperability with existing payment tools.
Inside the yuan digital wallet app, there is a notice explaining that the app is in a pilot research and development phase. According to SCMP, new user registrations are limited to areas subject to digital yuan testing and through major banks that provide e-CNY services. The test regions are Shenzhen, Suzhou, Xiongan, Chengdu, Shanghai, Hainan, Changsha, Xian, Qingdao, Dalian and the venues for this year’s Olympic Winter Games, hosted by Beijing.
