The governor of the People’s Bank of China praised recent tests of its national digital currency at the Hong Kong Fintech Week conference on Monday.
Over 4 million transactions totaling more than 2 billion yuan ($299 million) have been conducted using the digital yuan, Yi said.
Financial services in remote areas have been bolstered by new technologies, the governor explained, including microloans and risk management, which plays into how the China is looking to spread the digital currency.
The COVID-19 crisis has also accelerated the need for contactless banking, creating challenges for central banks looking to balance consumer needs and safety, he added.
Speaking on a virtual panel with the General Manager at the Bank for International Settlements Agustin Carstens and the President of the Dutch central bank Klass Knot, Yi noted safeguarding consumers’ private information is challenging.
Per a Reuters report Monday, Yi played down the prospect of an imminent launch, saying the digital yuan project is still in the early stages.
China must still develop a “fairly complicated and fairly complete legal framework,” he said, particularly around transparency.