China's Central Bank Discusses Digital Currency Launch

The People’s Bank of China, the nation’s central bank, is investigating the launch of its own digital currency.

AccessTimeIconJan 20, 2016 at 5:55 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 11, 2021 at 12:06 p.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

The People’s Bank of China (PBoC), the country's central bank, is moving toward the launch of its own digital currency.

The PBoC said in a 20th January release that it had held a meeting discussing the possibility in Beijing.

Attendees included central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan and deputy governor Fan Yifei, as well as a group of “relevant research institutions, major financial institutions and advisory bodies of experts”.

Notably, the central bank put together a team dedicated to digital currency research in 2014 – the work of which played into the Beijing meeting.

In addition, the PBoC received input from Citibank and Deloitte, as it weighed up how to issue the digital currency.

According to an unofficial translation of the release, the meeting urged the PBoC's digital currency research team to "actively absorb the important results" and to "further clarify the strategic objectives of the central bank-issued digital currency".

Further it should research key technologies and various digital currency applications for the "early introduction of digital currency issued by the central bank".

While the release gave no precise indication as to when the digital currency might be released, the central bank did give some indication of the factors driving its development.

Design of the digital currency, it said, should be based on "economic, convenience and safety principles', while low cost and "wide coverage" were also requirements.

Image Credit: wantanddo / Shutterstock.com

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.