China will launch another major test for its digital currency, the digital yuan, in January. Local reports affirm that Sichuan’s capital Chengdu will be the next hotspot for the consequent tryout of the nation’s future virtual asset.
The Local Government Giving Away $4.6M Worth of CBDC
According to a recent media report by mobile payment network Mpaypass, the capital of the Chinese province of Sichuan, Chengdu, will be the next area, which will test the efficiency of China’s digital yuan.
Following recent tryouts in Shenzhen and Suzhou, the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) trial will start at the beginning of this year. During the initiative, the government will supply citizens with 30 million digital yuan, worth $4.6 million.
The publication cites China’s Bank of Communications internal note, reading that the South-western city will offer its residents a chance to test the possibilities of the future CBDC via an initial lottery. Registrations will start on January 27th.
As per the publication, the users will need to sign-up through the “Tianfu Citizen Cloud” app. Afterward, they need to choose a bank to open a wallet. The entry requires a Chinese mobile phone number, plus a second-generation ID card. Users’ mobile phone location has to be in the Chengdu administrative area when registering.
Although it’s still unclear how many would benefit from the CBDC lottery, they will be able to spend their free digital money in local merchants from February 4th to February 26th. This timeframe coincides with the Lunar New Year festival celebrated in China.
Additionally, the report says that the city of Suzhou will engage another round in CBDC testing. The second wave will drop on January 27th this year and issue 40 million digital yuan, worth $6.1 million.
A Consecutive CBDC Trial
China already has a decent experience testing its opportunistic digital yuan project – some first steps in the eventual adoption of digital assets for everyday life.
Alongside the latest CBDC test launch in Chengdu, Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com will reportedly give away another 20 million digital yuan, worth $3.1 million. People could spend the digital currency on online shopping.
The latter would be a consecutive distribution of free digital money to Chinese citizens by the giant online retailer, which recently became the first virtual mall to allow digital yuan payments.
JD.com announced the launch of its subsidiary JD Digit to initiate its pilot program by the end of December 2020. The endeavor would enable clients to purchase certain items using the digital yuan. Back then, JD planned the issuance of 100,000 digital cash vouchers worth 20 million yuan to stimulate Suzhou city citizens in the eastern province of Jiangsu to use the innovative asset.
