A senior official from the Chinese central bank says there is still no date for the official rollout of its digital currency/ electronic payments (DC/EP) system following internal testing since April.
Sun Guofeng (孙国峰) head of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) monetary policy department, said that at present closed, internal testing of the DC/EP was still being conducted at Shenzhen, Suzhou, Xiong’an New District, Chengdu and the Beijing Winter Olympics sites.
According to Sun the tests which were first publicly announced in April are focusing on “theoretical reliability, systemic stability, functional practicality, procedural convenience, site applicability and risk controllability.”
Sun made the remarks at a routine press conference of the State Council held on 25 August, with the participation of senior officials from PBOC and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC).
Sun further said that “there is no schedule for the official release of the digital renminbi,” and that PBOC will “continue to advance R&D and testing work.”
China first commenced research into the development of a CBDC in 2014, with People’s Bank of China (PBOC) officials alluding to the “imminent” release of a statutory digital currency at a press conference in August 2019.
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