The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) has given the green light a physical card wallet pilot to test his digital yuan. Employees of a coffee shop in a Shanghai-based university hospital were selected as participants in the pilot project.
Wallet Card can pay or accept e-CNY without WiFi or a mobile connection
According to Tencent News, employees at Tongren Hospital at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine used the digital yuan token to pay for groceries. They used a POS device and a physical card with a small screen in the top right corner.
The card shows how much digital yuan is left in the wallet. Local media reports claim that the China Postal Savings Bank is in charge of technical support. With the “hard wallet” employees can buy products such as a cup of coffee or snacks.
One of the photos in Tencent’s article also shows a hospital employee holding a card with 144.75 yuan and three available offline payments. The latter feature allows users to pay or accept E-CNY transfers without Wi-Fi or a mobile network connection.
Digital Yuan tests are still being conducted in several Chinese cities
So far, the pilot programs for digital yuan have been conducted internally in Chinese cities like Shenzhen, Suzhou, Xiongan and Chengdu in preparation for the Winter Olympics – an event that is slated to take place in 2022.
Although local experts have warned that there is still “a long way to go” before the token can be fully rolled out, PBoC officials believe the digital yuan could be rolled out before the Olympic event.
The central bank wants to attract as many domestic and foreign viewers as possible to use the digital yuan. The Chinese government’s plans suggest reducing dependence on the USD.
What do you think of the ongoing Yuan digital tests? Let us know in the comments below.
Photo credit: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Tencent News
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