MYbank, a subsidiary of Alibaba’s payment giant Ant Group, is reportedly now aiding China in its effort to develop a digital yuan.
According to a CNBC report, the online bank backed by Ant has joined China’s digital yuan testing program which seeks to develop the country’s electronic currency.
WeBank, which is backed by Chinese tech giant Tencent, is also joining China’s push to be the first major nation to successfully roll out its digital currency.
A spokesperson for MYbank says that the bank aims to “advance the trial pursuant to the overall arrangement of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC).”
In addition, CNBC reports that the services of MYbank and WeBank will soon be added to the central bank’s official digital yuan app. The e-wallets of MYbank and WeBank will reportedly offer the same functionalities as those from six state-owned lenders which are also participating in the pilot program.
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.
In October, China’s electronic currency hit a milestone after moving 2 billion yuan or $299 million in four million separate transactions.
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