Thursday, May 30, 2024 – The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced on May 17, 2024, their integration with the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) to enable the set-up and use of e-CNY wallets for cross-border payments between Hong Kong and the Mainland in China, exclusively for Hong Kong residents. 1
The launch of an e-CNY wallet facility for local users in Hong Kong was among the six measures announced by the PBoC earlier this year.
The new e-CNY facility would target the growth of Chinese Central Bank’s digital currency customer base in Hong Kong.
Local users are thus eligible to set up e-CNY using their phone number.
“By expanding the e-CNY pilot in Hong Kong and leveraging the 24×7 operating hours and real-time transfer advantages of the FPS, users may now top up their e-CNY wallets anytime, anywhere, without having to open a Mainland bank account, thereby facilitating merchant payments in the Mainland by Hong Kong residents,” Eddi Yue, Chief Executive of the HKMA, stated. 1
However, since the e-CNY wallets are concerned with cross-border payments between Hong Kong and the Mainland, person-to-person transfers cannot be performed within Hong Kong.
The Digital Currency Institute (DCI) of the PBoC became the initial firm that joined to top up the e-CNY wallets using the fastest payment system (FPS) in the world. 17 retail banks in Hong Kong have been introduced to top up the e-CNY wallets.
The interoperability, which is directed at improving cross-border payments, will be overseen by DCI.
