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The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) is taking the testing phase of its digital yuan to the next level after gaining the support of US retail giants McDonald’s and Starbucks.
The trial program for the country’s sovereign digital currency and platform, known as the digital currency / electronic payment, DC / EP, also includes the Subway sandwich chain along with 16 other China-based companies, reports the South China Morning Post.
The world’s second largest economy has been working on the concept of a digital yuan since 2014 in an effort to enable instant payments and bring its economy into the digital age.
Unlike Bitcoin and decentralized crypto assets, the People’s Bank of China will be the centralized power behind the digital currency. Leaked images of the user interface circulated widely on social media, as the government is reportedly running a test pilot in four cities.
China’s central bank has yet to provide a launch date for the digital currency, however, it appeared to speed up its schedule after Facebook announced its plans to launch a global digital currency.
After receiving a strong dose of reaction from regulators, Facebook recently modified its initial proposal to launch a single global asset backed by a basket of assets. Instead, it now plans to launch a series of digital currencies pegged to local currencies.
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Featured Image: Shutterstock / fuyu liu
