In April 2020, China was the first major economy to pilot a digital currency, the e-yuan or e-CNY. The e-CNY, which will eventually replace physical cash and is currently being tested in Chinese cities, is integrated with the Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP) system and data processing network run by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC). In offering citizens an alternative to decentralised cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (which China has banned) and partnering with the country’s tech giants who currently dominate the electronic payment space, China is neutralising key external and internal threats to its governance and control of monetary policy.
China’s digital currency: Next stop, Africa? | The Interpreter (lowyinstitute.org)
