Chinese companies, banks, and local governments are utilizing the digital yuan to facilitate gold recycling and pay land registry fees. The Shenzhen Branch of the People’s Bank of China has partnered with the Shanghai Gold Exchange for a gold recycling project supported by the central bank digital currency (CBDC). Other participants in the project include the local government of Shenzhen’s Futian District, the Shenzhen Branch of China Construction Bank, and gold trading firm Jinyafu.
These parties are exploring the possibility of using the digital yuan for settlements in gold recycling, potentially leveraging technology developed by Jinyafu, the first company to create a CBDC-powered gold recycling platform in China. The platform enables customers to receive real-time payments through their mobile numbers or wallet IDs. Gold recycling has been increasing in popularity in China over the past decade. Furthermore, collaboration between banks and real estate agencies is also evident in CBDC-powered land registry transactions. Fuqing, a city in Fujian province, recorded the largest-ever CBDC payment for a land registry fee, worth nearly $19 million. The payment was processed using a digital yuan wallet from China Merchants Bank.
Fuqing has been at the forefront of adopting CBDC-powered land registry systems. The city previously achieved a national first by implementing a digital yuan payment for land registry fees in collaboration with the Municipal Public Resource Trading Center, Natural Resources and Planning Bureau, and Taxation Bureau. Fuqing aims to continue innovating the adoption of the digital yuan in various scenarios, contributing to digital financial innovation and enhancing the efficiency of economic services. Chinese telecom companies have also introduced new e-CNY functions in their latest “Super SIM” cards.
