China Expands Digital Yuan Network to 30 Bank Operators

China adds eight banks to boost e-CNY access as operator count hits 30

The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has approved eight additional commercial banks to join the country’s digital yuan (e-CNY) operating network, raising the total number of authorized operators to 30. The move forms part of the PBOC’s wider push to scale its central bank digital currency (CBDC) distribution through market-oriented, rule-based expansion that leverages existing banking infrastructure.

Newly approved institutions—Ping An Bank, Hengfeng Bank, China Bohai Bank, Bank of Shanghai, Bank of Hangzhou, Huishang Bank, Bank of Changsha and Guangxi Beibu Gulf Bank—have been connected to the central bank’s core digital renminbi system. That technical link is a prerequisite for live e-CNY services; customer-facing functions will begin once each bank completes remaining business and technical preparations, the PBOC said in its Aug. 17 statement.

Why this matters for digital renminbi adoption

Bringing more commercial banks into the e-CNY distribution model does two things: it broadens channels for consumer and corporate access, and it reduces the operational burden on the central bank. China’s two-tier model—where the PBOC issues the digital currency and licensed banks and payment firms provide retail-facing services—depends on a network of operators to scale wallet distribution, settlement and payments.

Expanding the operator network also supports the PBOC’s stated objectives for the 2026–2030 Five-Year Plan, which emphasizes steady development of the digital renminbi. Authorities say the additional banks will improve access to secure, convenient and efficient payment options for users across urban and regional markets.

Operator growth in 2026: rapid onboarding and geographic reach

The latest approvals come less than five months after a larger April 2 tranche that added 12 institutions, including China CITIC Bank, China Everbright Bank, Hua Xia Bank, China Minsheng Bank, China Guangfa Bank, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and several city and regional banks. That earlier round raised the operator count to 22; the recent additions bring the total to 30 within the same calendar year, signaling rapid scaling.

Banks in the new cohort span national joint-stock institutions as well as regional and city commercial banks. By integrating banks that already maintain deep client relationships and established payment rails, the PBOC can extend e-CNY services efficiently across retail, municipal and corporate segments without building a parallel retail distribution system.

List of newly connected banks (Aug. 17, 2026)

• Ping An Bank
• Hengfeng Bank
• China Bohai Bank
• Bank of Shanghai
• Bank of Hangzhou
• Huishang Bank
• Bank of Changsha
• Guangxi Beibu Gulf Bank

Each will commence customer-facing e-CNY operations after completing business and technical checks and ensuring compliance with the central bank’s integration standards.

Operational and regulatory changes underpinning e-CNY evolution

A key development that accelerated institutional interest in the digital yuan was the PBOC’s January 1, 2026 change permitting banks to pay interest on verified e-CNY wallets. Under revised rules, verified digital renminbi balances became eligible for interest under the same self-regulatory arrangements used for conventional deposits, and those balances gained protection under China’s national deposit insurance system.

That shift transformed the e-CNY from a cash-like instrument into a balance that can be managed inside banks’ asset-liability frameworks. Commercial banks can now include eligible e-CNY balances in their interest-bearing operations, while non-bank payment firms remain subject to a 100% reserve requirement—holding customer digital renminbi reserves in full at regulated institutions.

Impact on consumer wallets and institutional behavior

Allowing interest on verified wallets strengthens the value proposition for consumers and firms to hold e-CNY balances, and it incentivizes banks to distribute wallets through their existing channels. For banks, the change opened revenue and liquidity management opportunities; for users, deposit insurance and interest availability reduce opportunity costs of adopting the digital renminbi.

Official data cited when the changes were announced showed the digital yuan had processed 3.48 billion transactions by November 2025, reflecting substantial traction from pilots involving retail payments, government services and commercial settlement use cases.

Cross-border pilots accelerate: CBETS and multilateral CBDC bridges

China has simultaneously progressed cross-border testing for the e-CNY. In July, the Shanghai branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) and ICBC Singapore completed the first China–Singapore payment using the upgraded Digital Currency Express comprehensive settlement platform—widely known as CBETS. The transaction was for nearly 10 million yuan in import shipping costs for a subsidiary of a centrally owned enterprise; funds were settled fully in digital renminbi and reached the Singapore recipient on the same day.

CBETS was developed by the International Operation Center for the digital renminbi with guidance from the PBOC’s Digital Currency Research Institute. The upgraded platform merges earlier cross-border payment, blockchain service and digital asset systems while supporting ISO 20022 messaging standards widely used in international finance.

Notable international tests and links

• ICBC has implemented digital yuan payment and collection corridors with Singapore and Laos using CBETS.
• ICBC’s Inner Mongolia branch completed a 220 million yuan transfer to Hong Kong via a multilateral CBDC bridge.
• By June, the international digital yuan platform had signed direct participant agreements with 26 financial institutions, including ICBC Asia, Bank of China Hong Kong, Standard Chartered China and ICBC branches in Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Macau and Qatar.

These trials demonstrate the PBOC’s dual focus on domestic retail scale-up and selective internationalization of the e-CNY for trade and corporate settlement.

Regional pilots and Guangdong’s cross-border ambitions

Local authorities are aligning regional policies with national digital renminbi objectives. In August, Guangdong published a draft development plan proposing expanded cross-border e-CNY trials within the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone. The consultation calls for more cross-border payment programs, offshore finance initiatives, green finance pilots and fintech testing tied to digital yuan usage.

Guangdong’s draft also recommends scaling cross-border supply chain finance products, cross-boundary wealth management schemes and multi-currency integrated accounts, with public consultation open until Sept. 5.

Such regional experiments could become important laboratories for testing regulatory, tax and operational frameworks that govern cross-border CBDC usage in the context of trade, investment and financial innovation.

What this means for the global CBDC and crypto landscape

China’s steady addition of commercial banks to the e-CNY network and its regulatory pivot to allow interest on verified wallets reinforce the digital yuan’s positioning as a state-backed, bank-integrated settlement instrument. For global observers and crypto markets, several implications follow:

• Payment rails: Integration with banks and upgrades like CBETS show how a CBDC can be woven into existing payment and settlement infrastructure to reduce friction in cross-border trade.
• Competitive dynamics: A larger operator network fosters competition among banks to offer e-CNY services, potentially leading to new wallet features, merchant integrations and fintech partnerships.
• Regulatory clarity: Deposit insurance and interest policies reduce uncertainty around holding e-CNY and make it functionally closer to bank deposits than cash, which may influence user adoption and treasury practices.
• Cross-border architecture: Multilateral CBDC bridges and ISO 20022-compatible platforms provide technical blueprints for other jurisdictions exploring CBDC interoperability.

Outlook and next steps

The PBOC has signaled continued gradual expansion, stating it will keep admitting qualified institutions into the operator network while maintaining open and fair competition. As more banks go live and regional pilots like Guangdong’s advance, observers should expect incremental increases in transactional volumes, broader merchant acceptance, and deeper experimentation with cross-border use cases tied to trade settlement and supply chain finance.

For market participants, financial institutions and fintech providers, the priority will be aligning product offerings, compliance frameworks and technical integrations to leverage the growing e-CNY ecosystem. For corporates engaged in cross-border trade, the maturing CBETS infrastructure promises faster same-day digital renminbi settlement in selected corridors.

China’s approach—central issuance plus commercial distribution—continues to shape the practical development path for a large-scale CBDC. As the e-CNY transitions toward deposit-like functionality and expands internationally in targeted experiments, it will remain a key case study for central banks, regulators and crypto-industry stakeholders worldwide.