The launch of the Chinese digital Yuan may be delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak. The recent health epidemic has hit the ‘Digital Currency Electronic Payment’ initiative of the Chinese government. The regional governments of many provinces struggle to contain the outbreak that began in Wuhan province in November 2019.
The proposed launch date of the Chinese digital Yuan was earlier set in the first quarter of 2020. This timeline now seems unachievable as the sovereign currency development isn’t the primary concern anymore. However, as per the Global Times, the Asian country is positive about launching the Chinese digital Yuan this year.
Chinese digital Yuan to launch in 2020
Before the Coronavirus epidemic, the People’s Bank of China was highly optimistic about the project’s launch. The efforts to launch the ‘virtual cash’ were underway big time. The upcoming digital currency was considered the bank’s major targets in 2020, and there was extensive focus on its research and development. Two dedicated research institutes were set up in Suzhou and Shenzen, besides Beijing headquarters, to fast track its launch.
Despite the delay, China is still working vigorously to launch the DCEP before 2020 ends. It must be noted that PBOC has the resources, technical prowess and talent to ensure the project sees the light of the day. The deadline may have moved a little further, but the project is very much inactive state. The coronavirus outbreak caused unforeseen delays as work was suspended in many departments and government institutions. The research staff, PBOC staff, policymakers, etc. were not available for an extended period. The development process was halted.
Chinese digital Yuan will be a trendsetter
The PBoC will certainly set a new milestone in the journey to achieve true central bank digital currencies. The technological roadmap of the launch is ready to go live as per vice director of the Advanced Research Institute of Blockchain at Tsinghua University, CaoYin. He goes on to add that the DCEP project has delivered fruitful results.
China had to sanitize a huge cache of its physical currency in the wake of coronavirus. This has made a strong case to implement digital currency, which does not need physical contact. A virtual currency has a huge advantage in such a scenario. The spread of diseases through physical cash can be eliminated by using digital cash. As the launch of Chinese digital Yuan inches closer, it will face stiff competition from Japanese, European, and Asian counterparts.
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