China CBDC Begins Trial With e-CNY Payment For Public Transportation

China formally launched the next phase of its central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot test program on Tuesday.

The digital yuan (e-CNY) CBDC can now be used to pay for public bus rides on 10 transit routes in Guanzhou, a first for the country.

To do so, travelers must first download the e-CNY app, deposit monies, and then scan the QR code located in the bus payment area.

Similarly, the city of Ningbo announced the day before that customers can now use e-CNY to pay for metro rides at 125 stations.

Ningbo is China’s ninth city to implement the e-CNY pilot test in its subway lines, allowing passengers to just scan and pay for their trip.

This year, the Chinese government has swiftly extended the use of the e-CNY. Just last week, it became allowed to use the CBDC to pay for employee housing fund contributions in the city of Guangzhou.

To boost consumer spending in the face of coronavirus restrictions, the government collaborated with food-delivery company Meituan and e-commerce platform JD.com to develop e-CNY airdrops that may be spent at designated locations.

Meituan’s most recent statistics update, dated June 20, showed that over 6 million unique customers had ordered services with e-CNY cash.

Meanwhile, JD.com reported that as of July, it had handled over 4 million e-commerce transactions for an estimated 900 million CNY ($131.6 million) since accepting the e-CNY as currency.

In the first five months of 2022, around 830 billion ($121.4 billion) in e-CNY transactions were reported.