Apart from the Lunar New Year activities, the Chinese government has been taking steps to improve the use of its CBDC.
During the Lunar New Year season, the Chinese government distributed millions of dollars worth of its central bank digital currency (CBDC). The Lunar New Year, also the Chinese New Year or Spring Festival, is a period of celebration with many activities. As such, Chinese cities rolled out digital yuan activities worth more than 180 million yuan ($26.6 million) to prompt adoption.
The Chinese CBDC, or e-CNY, has been in the works for some time, with an intense attempt to establish its use. Like many other countries working on developing their digital currencies, China has performed multiple tests of the digital yuan in different parts of the country.
China Issues CBDC during Lunar New Year
The Global Times reported that the Chinese government launched about 200 CBDC activities across the country during the Lunar New Year. The Chinese cities aimed to promote CBDC consumption during the Lunar New Year, including consumption coupons, subsidiaries, and more programs. The report revealed that Lianyungang in East China’s Jiangsu Province and Jinan in East China’s Shandong Province distributed CBDC coupons during the Lunar New Year holiday to bolster consumption.
At the same time, some local governments in China used the digital yuan to subsidize businesses in order to improve recovery. For instance, Shenzhen in Guangdong Province issued 100 million yuan (14.7 million) worth of CBDC during the Lunar New Year holiday. The local government handed out the e-CNY to subsidize the city’s catering industry. Additionally, there are reports that Hangzhou gave each of its residents 80 yuan ($12) e-CNY vouchers on the 16th of January. In total, the city spent about 4 million yuan in its effort to boost the CBDC during the Lunar New Year season.
There is an increased enthusiasm toward digital currency in China. Data compiled by Meituan shows that the CBDC the Hangzhou government in Zhejiang Province gave before the holidays were taken up within 9 seconds.
China’s Continuous Attempt to Boost e-CNY’s Growth
Apart from the Lunar New Year activities, the Chinese government has been taking steps to improve the use of its CBDC. The e-CNYwallet app added a new feature that enables sending “red carpets.” The feature, which was introduced in December, is used for gifting money. More so, the wallet app upgraded as the new began with another feature that enables contactless payment with Android phones. The update allows payment even if the device has no power or internet.
On the 1st of February, senior ruling party officials in the ruling party of Suzhou set an ambitious new target for using the digital yuan. The party official set a target of 2 trillion yuan worth of e-CNY transactions in the city by the end of 2023.
Ibukun is a crypto/finance writer interested in passing relevant information, using non-complex words to reach all kinds of audience.
Apart from writing, she likes to see movies, cook, and explore restaurants in the city of Lagos, where she resides.
