China expands digital yuan rollout in Changshu

China continues to show leadership in central bank digital currency (CBDC). Indeed, the Middle Kingdom extended the use of the digital yuan to officials in the city of Changshu.

China, pioneer of the CBDC and its rapid expansion

The deployment of the digital yuan is moving at cruising speed. Indeed, according to South China Morning Post, the Chinese CBDC was rolled out to 26 different regions across 17 of the country’s 23 provinces in less than a month. This proves how determined the Communist Party is to generalize the use of its CBDC.

The city of Changshu, located less than 160 km from Shanghai, is the latest to adopt the digital yuan. Changshu doctors, teachers and journalists could receive their salaries in e-CNY from next month.

Since the launch of the digital yuan introduction pilot project in 2020, the cities of Suzhou, Shenzhen, Xiongan and Chengdu have been the first trial areas. Even if the first tests did not meet with the expected success, the digital renminbi is gaining more and more ground. Nevertheless, its growing adoption in the country raises several questions.

Privacy, censorship and surveillance: the digital yuan worries

The deployment of the CBDC in China raises questions. The Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantisand the Democrat Robert F. Kennedy Jr.., believe that CBDCs are a threat to individual freedoms.

Indeed, the Communist Party intends to use it to strengthen surveillance and control of the population. The Chinese social credit system could be optimized by the use of CBDC. The digital yuan is a formidable weapon to strengthen the interference in the privacy of citizens.

It is in particular for this reason that the Chinese totalitarian power continues to be a pioneer in the field of CBDC. Its deployment across the country is very rapid. The digital yuan is already present in several shops. It is also used in several regions to pay wages public sector employees.

However, while stablecoins are an innovation in the payments industry, their expansion raises concerns about potential implications for the business model of commercial banks as well as censorship and mass surveillance. It is more than crucial to follow these developments closely and consider the potential dangers as the use of CBDCs is becoming widespread.

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