When "instant remittance" becomes a reality, it's the moment of transformation for cross - border payments.
Compared with traditional cross - border remittance routes, Cross - border Payment Connect significantly shortens the remittance chain and reduces intermediary costs, lowers transaction fees, cuts down processing time, and remarkably improves remittance efficiency and user experience.
When Ms. Fang took out her phone and instantly remitted 10,000 RMB from Shenzhen to her daughter's account in Hong Kong for her studies in just a few seconds, she might not have realized that she was standing in a "frontier laboratory" for the reconstruction of the payment network.
"In the past, I had to exchange Hong Kong dollars and wait for half a day," Ms. Fang recalled the hassle of cross - border remittances in the past. On June 22, 2025, the day when "Cross - border Payment Connect" was officially launched, she only needed a mobile phone number and a name to instantly remit RMB to a "Faster Payment System" (FPS) account in Hong Kong through the China Merchants Bank App. As one of the first - batch users, her experience is a true portrayal of the implementation of digital payment interconnection between Shenzhen and Hong Kong.
Although this service has not been directly integrated into the digital RMB wallet, its clearing logic and technical interfaces have been regarded as the "pre - runway" for the future internationalization of the digital RMB (e - CNY).
In the same week, six foreign banks from Africa, Central Asia, the UAE, and Singapore announced their access to the Cross - Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). This development not only means the international expansion of the RMB payment and clearing system but also lays a technical foundation for the cross - border interconnection of the digital RMB in countries and regions along the "Belt and Road" and in the RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership) countries.
Hong Kong has pressed the "accelerator button" on digital finance. On June 26, 2025, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government released the "Policy Declaration on the Development of Digital Assets in Hong Kong 2.0" (hereinafter referred to as "Declaration 2.0"). Paul Chan Mo - po, the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, said that digital assets are an important part of fintech. Emerging technologies such as blockchain will enable more efficient and low - cost financial transactions, making financial services more inclusive and accessible.
Wang Wei, a partner at Tianyuan Law Firm, pointed out that "Declaration 2.0" focuses on the comprehensive construction of technical standards and regulatory systems. The document replaces the term "virtual assets" with "digital assets" and proposes a new development framework, marking that Hong Kong's digital finance policy has entered the "construction drawing" stage from exploration to implementation.
Xu Zhengyu, the Deputy Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, said that Hong Kong's institutional advantages and international connectivity give it a natural first - mover advantage in promoting the transformation of traditional finance into the digital asset era. The framework of "Declaration 2.0" is expected to create a credible, sustainable, and expandable digital asset ecosystem.
As Wang Wei said, "Hong Kong's practice will not only be a technology test field but also a 'stress test' for how the digital RMB can coexist, compete, and even integrate with the global digital asset ecosystem under open - market conditions."
Scenario Practice
As the digital RMB continues to expand its scenario applications, the Shanghai Metro has quietly completed a symbolic upgrade. Since June 28, passengers can use digital RMB hard wallets and bank cards such as UnionPay, Visa, Mastercard, and American Express to swipe in at all stations on the Shanghai Rail Transit network.
According to Ai Wenwei, the deputy general manager of the Shanghai Rail Transit Network Dispatching and Command Center, all station equipment across the network currently supports card - swiping entry. This new method provides a more convenient and smooth payment experience for domestic and foreign tourists, especially overseas travelers.
"In the past, we had to queue up and exchange coins to buy tickets. Now, there's no need to take out the phone. Just tap the bank card and you can enter the station," an overseas traveler exclaimed at Yuyuan Station. The renovated turnstiles not only support NFC (Near - Field Communication) recognition but also are compatible with international bank cards and digital RMB hard wallets, and allow small - amount contactless payments. Without replacing the terminal hardware, multi - currency, multi - network, and multi - identity access has been achieved.
Especially for inbound travelers, this innovation is equivalent to a "public currency gateway" that does not require account opening, currency exchange, or App registration. This "light - experience, fast - payment" application scenario provides a reference for the future internationalization path of the digital RMB.
In the past three years, China has conducted pilot projects on the digital RMB in 26 provinces and cities across the country, covering scenarios such as street stalls, the public transportation system, financial subsidies, and supply - chain finance. Data from the People's Bank of China (hereinafter referred to as the "PBOC") shows that as of the end of July 2024, the digital RMB App had cumulatively opened 180 million personal wallets, and the cumulative transaction amount in the pilot areas reached 7.3 trillion yuan.
Compared with traditional account - clearing routes, the digital RMB has new features such as "programmability" and "controllable anonymity." However, its cross - border function is still in the early pilot stage, mainly realized through the Multi - Central Bank Digital Currency Bridge (mBridge) platform or the "exchange first, then pay" model, and has not yet achieved "wallet - to - wallet" global circulation.
A Substantive Step
However, the infrastructure for RMB cross - border payment has taken the lead.
According to the definition of the PBOC, Cross - border Payment Connect refers to the connection between the online inter - bank payment clearing system in the Chinese mainland and the Faster Payment System (FPS) in Hong Kong. Under the premise of complying with relevant laws and regulations in both regions, it provides real - time cross - border payment services for residents in both places.
The launch of "Cross - border Payment Connect" has created a small - amount, high - frequency two - way settlement channel between the RMB and the Hong Kong dollar. According to data from the Fujian Branch of the PBOC, as of June 26, Fujian had completed 2,506 transactions through "Cross - border Payment Connect," with an amount of 8.3425 million yuan. Among them, there were 1,910 south - bound transactions (remittances from the mainland to Hong Kong), with an amount of 7.4203 million yuan, mainly used for daily consumption such as tourism and education; and 596 north - bound transactions, with an amount of 922,200 yuan.
Residents in Shenzhen who were among the first to experience "Cross - border Payment Connect" said it was "more convenient than WeChat transfers." They only need a mobile phone number and a name to complete the remittance in real - time, eliminating the processes of currency exchange and waiting in traditional remittances. Mr. Li in Fuzhou used this channel to remit money to his son studying in Hong Kong and said, "The money arrives quickly, and multiple operations are allowed. There's no need to worry when the child urgently needs money."
Fan Yaosheng, the general manager of the Payment and Settlement Department of the Bank of China, said that customers only need to upgrade their mobile banking apps to remit RMB through this function without filling in complex account information. Chen Wen, the vice - president of the Bank of China (Hong Kong), pointed out that this mechanism supports the instant exchange and clearing of the RMB and the Hong Kong dollar, providing "essential convenience" for the capital flow between residents and enterprises in the region.
In a nutshell, from "waiting for currency exchange" to "instant arrival," "Cross - border Payment Connect" is making digital finance move from facilitating daily life and step out of the grand - narrative technical world into the real and tangible people's livelihood experience.
Compared with traditional cross - border remittance routes, Cross - border Payment Connect significantly shortens the remittance chain and reduces intermediary costs, lowers transaction fees, cuts down processing time, and remarkably improves remittance efficiency and user experience.
Although "Cross - border Payment Connect" is not directly integrated into the digital RMB wallet, its underlying structure, including the identity authentication mechanism, data standards, and regulatory coordination path, actually presets a "system runway" for the future cross - border payment of the digital RMB.
According to the PBOC's definition, the digital RMB is a digital form of central bank currency certificate and related payment system provided by the PBOC. It is operated by qualified designated operating institutions, has an account and value model, is based on a broad - based account system, is integrated with the traditional bank account system, supports controllable anonymity, and has legal tender status.
The digital RMB has three major characteristics: "account and value model," "controllable anonymity," and "programmability." For example, in the account model, the digital RMB can be integrated with the traditional bank account system and transactions can be made by entering the other party's mobile phone number or wallet number. In the value model, value exchange can be carried out in the form of currency strings, which can provide payment services on the blockchain and can also be used in offline extreme scenarios such as "no network" and "no power." The digital RMB can also achieve programmability by loading smart contracts that do not affect currency functions.
In the process of connecting with overseas financial networks, "Cross - border Payment Connect" also meets compliance requirements such as anti - money laundering and counter - terrorism financing. Participating banks need to establish risk - control models, strengthen monitoring of suspicious transactions, and share key data with regulatory authorities. This compliance foundation builds a credible compliance template for the cross - border pilot of the digital RMB.
From a system - level perspective, the launch of "Cross - border Payment Connect" is not just an experiment but the start of a standardized and replicable mechanism.
The "Going Global" of the Digital RMB
If the future of the digital economy has arrived, then building a matching digital currency system is also an inevitable part of the equation.
In November 2024, seven departments including the PBOC jointly issued the "Action Plan for Promoting the High - Quality Development of Digital Finance," aiming to basically establish a modern financial system highly adaptable to the digital economy by the end of 2027.
At the Summer Davos Forum, Li Bo, the deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), pointed out that the global consensus on the regulation of stablecoins is still in the making. The core disputes are as follows: First, what is their nature - currency or financial assets? Second, if regarded as currency, which level of M0 (currency in circulation), M1 (narrow money), or M2 (broad money) should they be included in? This will determine their regulatory logic and the scope of legal application.
When the path is unclear, how to make a move? Cao Tong, the co - chairman of the International Monetary Institute of Renmin University of China, has clearly pointed out that digitalization is an important lever for RMB internationalization, and the window period should be used to promote a globalization path with "system first."
Particularly noteworthy is the new term "RMB stablecoin." Cao Tong believes that in essence, it is a "digital currency pegged to offshore RMB," which is suitable for international trade pricing and settlement and helps improve the applicability and convenience of the RMB in global small - and medium - sized trade. However, it also faces challenges such as regulatory gaps, inconsistent market trust, and different technical standards.
The former deputy - president of the Bank of China and the co - chairman of Digital China Information Service Group believes that the current US - dollar - dominated stablecoin system has established a clearing advantage in both technical and market aspects. If the digital RMB cannot be significantly more efficient and cost - effective than US - dollar stablecoins in cross - border payments, the path of RMB internationalization will face substantial challenges.
Wang Wei, the author of "Compliance Guide for Blockchain Digital Currencies," said bluntly that USDT, a market - driven, decentralized but highly efficient US - dollar stablecoin, has already gained a first - mover advantage in some countries and regions in gray cross - border payments and small - and medium - sized enterprise trade.
He pointed out that this is a contest between "top - down" sovereign currencies and "bottom - up" market currencies. The former emphasizes compliance, controllability, and national credit endorsement, while the latter has become the de - facto standard through network effects, convenient circulation, and wide coverage.
Hong Kong has become the "stress test field" for this game. In Wang Wei's view, "Declaration 2.0" marks that Hong Kong is no longer just a transit point for global capital but aims to build an institutionalized financial center where "digital assets are integrated into the real economy." The open regulatory framework, combined with high compatibility with the mainland's financial system, provides a "fertile institutional ground" for building a bridge between the digital RMB and the global digital asset ecosystem.
Standard Chartered Bank pointed out in an internal memo that if the digital RMB can form synergy with the Cross - Border Interbank Payment System, the Global Payment Innovation (gpi) provided by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), and the Multi - Central Bank Digital Currency Bridge in cross - border scenarios, it will significantly improve the settlement convenience and transparency of the RMB. However, Hong Kong's role as a "digital sandbox" is a key bridge rather than the end - goal.
Perhaps the "going global" of the digital RMB is more like a marathon than a sprint.
This article is from the WeChat public account "Economic Observer". Author: Ouyang Xiaohong. Republished by 36Kr with permission.