Chinese authorities have updated the mobile app of the central bank digital currency (CBDC). Foreign users can now register an e-CNY wallet linked to an international phone number and top up their balance using Visa and Mastercard debit cards.
The e-CNY mobile app for iOS has been updated. According to the update description, users are now able to top up their e-CNY wallet with international cards.
Tourists and foreign citizens intending to visit the People’s Republic of China can use international mobile numbers to register and open e-CNY wallets, as well as top up their balance using Visa and Mastercard debit cards.
It’s worth noting that the mobile app update partially coincided with the start of the Hangzhou Asian Games, which will potentially attract a large number of tourists and foreign athletes. This opens up new opportunities for the PRC authorities to pilot test the CBDC.
The large-scale testing of the digital yuan with the involvement of foreign users began during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Then the use of the e-CNY mobile app was limited to the territory of the Olympic Village.
Now foreign users can use the digital currency throughout the country. According to the National Bank of China (NBC), at the end of May 2022, more than 4.5 million merchants were already accepting the e-CNY as payment. And by late June 2023, the volume of CBDC transactions in China totaled over 1.8 trillion yuan ($250 billion).
