As the stablecoin regulations in Hong Kong come into effect and the digital asset boom surges, the Chinese government is also steadily accelerating its push in the field of digital renminbi (e-CNY). Recently, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) drafted and publicly solicited opinions on the "Regulations on Promoting and Regulating the Application of Electronic Documents (Draft for Comments)," which clearly states that financial institutions are encouraged to explore the use of new payment methods such as digital renminbi for cross-border payments, under the premise of legal compliance and controllable risks, and to actively and prudently innovate financial products and service models. This policy signal, combined with the People's Bank of China (PBOC) and Bank Indonesia launching a bilateral local currency settlement framework, as well as the establishment of the international operation center for digital renminbi, collectively outlines a grand strategic vision for China to accelerate the internationalization of the renminbi with digital renminbi at its core.

I. Policy Encouragement: New Opportunities for Digital Renminbi Cross-Border Payments

The "Regulations on Promoting and Regulating the Application of Electronic Documents (Draft for Comments)" released by the CAC aims to promote and regulate the application of electronic documents, improve the digitalization level of goods trade and transportation, reduce logistics costs for society as a whole, protect the legal rights and interests of parties involved in electronic document activities, and safeguard national security and public interests. Among these, the statements regarding digital renminbi cross-border payments are particularly noteworthy:

Encouraging Financial Institutions to Explore: The draft clearly encourages financial institutions to explore the use of new payment methods such as digital renminbi for cross-border payments based on the characteristics of electronic documents, under the premise of legal compliance and controllable risks, and to actively and prudently innovate financial products and service models.

Enhancing Business Digitalization Level: Institutions and enterprises in the fields of goods trade, logistics, and finance are encouraged to recognize and use electronic documents when conducting business, enhancing the digitalization level of business applications and promoting quality and efficiency improvements in the industry.

Promoting Cross-Border Business Services: Chinese electronic document system operators are encouraged to provide cross-border business services to domestic and foreign users in accordance with national data cross-border security management regulations, promoting the application of electronic documents in international trade and transportation.

Electronic documents refer to documents in the form of data messages that can prove the legal relationships between parties regarding goods transportation, warehousing, cargo insurance, etc., including electronic bills of lading, electronic multimodal transport documents, electronic sea waybills, electronic railway freight bills, electronic air waybills, electronic warehouse receipts, and electronic cargo insurance policies. Combining digital renminbi with electronic documents will greatly enhance the efficiency and security of cross-border trade and reduce transaction costs.

II. Central Bank's Multi-Pronged Approach: Accelerating the Internationalization of Digital Renminbi

While encouraging policies are in place, the People's Bank of China is also making efforts in multiple areas to accelerate the internationalization of digital renminbi:

Cooperation with Bank Indonesia: On September 11, 2025, the People's Bank of China and Bank Indonesia jointly launched a bilateral local currency settlement (LCT) framework and a QR code interconnectivity cooperation project, which is expected to be officially put into production within 2025, adopting local currency settlement methods, marking significant progress in their payment cooperation.

CIPS System Optimization: Haitong International released a research report stating that the previous modifications and improvements to the CIPS system's business rules by the central bank will further promote the CIPS system's adoption, helping to accelerate the integration of cross-border payment settlement channels and resources for the renminbi, and improve the efficiency of renminbi cross-border clearing.

Establishment of the International Operation Center for Digital Renminbi: The People's Bank of China announced the establishment of the international operation center for digital renminbi at the opening ceremony of the Lujiazui Forum in June 2025, aiming to promote the international operation of digital renminbi and the development of financial market businesses, serving digital financial innovation.

Optimizing Measurement Framework and Serving the Real Economy: Mu Changchun, director of the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People's Bank of China, recently stated at the 2025 Inclusion·Bund Conference that to ensure that the money supply aligns with economic growth and price expectations, while enhancing the enthusiasm of commercial banks and users, the measurement framework for digital renminbi should be upgraded, and better monetary services for the real economy should be provided through business technology features such as currency strings and a globally unified ledger.

Expanding Application Scenarios: There have been several recent developments in China's digital renminbi field, including the first bilateral cross-border settlement business of digital renminbi between China and Singapore in Chongqing; the successful implementation of the first digital renminbi wallet withdrawal + multilateral central bank digital currency bridge clearing cross-border remittance business by China Merchants Bank's Beijing branch. Additionally, the General Office of the State Council of China recently issued the "Opinions on Releasing the Potential of Sports Consumption and Further Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Sports Industry," which proposes to optimize payment services for sports consumption and accelerate the expansion of digital renminbi application scenarios in sports consumption.

III. Deep Considerations of the Renminbi Internationalization Strategy

China's active promotion of digital renminbi cross-border payments is underpinned by deep strategic considerations for the internationalization of the renminbi. Against the backdrop of global dollar hegemony, the promotion of digital renminbi is expected to provide more diverse options for global trade and finance, reducing dependence on a single currency.

Enhancing Cross-Border Payment Efficiency: Digital renminbi, based on blockchain technology, has advantages of real-time settlement, low cost, and high efficiency, which can significantly enhance the efficiency of cross-border payments and reduce transaction costs for enterprises and individuals.

Strengthening Monetary Sovereignty: In the context of the global expansion of dollar stablecoins, the cross-border application of digital renminbi helps maintain China's monetary sovereignty and reduces the potential impact of "digital dollarization" on China's financial system.

Serving the Belt and Road Initiative: Digital renminbi can better serve the trade and investment of countries along the Belt and Road, promote the use of renminbi in the region, and drive the formation of a trade settlement system priced in renminbi.

Although there have been rumors that the Chinese government would launch a stablecoin pegged to the renminbi to counter dollar hegemony, no relevant information has been confirmed. Currently, it appears that the Chinese government is more inclined to steadily promote the internationalization of the renminbi through central bank digital currency—digital renminbi—rather than through private stablecoins.

Conclusion:

The encouragement of digital renminbi cross-border payments by the CAC, along with the proactive promotion of international cooperation and application scenario expansion by the People's Bank of China, together constitute an important part of China's strategy to accelerate the internationalization of the renminbi. In the context of profound changes in the global digital financial landscape, digital renminbi is expected to become a key force for China to enhance its international influence and reshape the global payment system. With the continuous exploration and improvement of digital renminbi cross-border payments, we have reason to believe that the status of the renminbi in global trade and finance will be further enhanced, contributing Chinese wisdom to the construction of a more diverse and balanced international monetary system.

Related Reading: Chinese Court Rules "Overseas Mining" Commercial Contracts Invalid, What Happened?

Original: “CAC Encourages Digital Renminbi Cross-Border Payments, PBOC and Indonesia Cooperation Accelerates”

免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。