In a significant move towards embracing the digital yuan, Industrial Bank, a Fuzhou-based joint-stock commercial bank, has introduced the country’s inaugural central bank digital currency (CBDC)-powered settlement service for bulk commodity spot clearing. The initiative carried out in collaboration with the Shanghai Clearing House, marks a milestone in the adoption of the digital yuan in the banking sector and presents new opportunities for the application of this digital currency in commodity trading scenarios.
As a member of the spot clearing division of Interbank Market Clearing Co., Ltd. (commonly referred to as Shanghai Clearing House), Industrial Bank has played a pioneering role by launching the first-ever commodity spot clearing digital RMB settlement service at its Qingdao Branch. This development places Industrial Bank among the first eight commercial banks to successfully apply digital RMB to commodity spot trading, thus laying the foundation for further advancements in this domain.
The commodity spot clearing business of Shanghai Clearing House holds significant importance as it seeks to provide precise support to the real economy’s high-quality development through effective interbank market risk control and clearing.
Recently, Shanghai Clearing House added a new digital RMB settlement scenario to complement the existing clearing settlement model. As the designated operating institution for digital RMB, Industrial Bank is one of the first banks to implement digital RMB settlement services in cooperation with Shanghai Clearing House.
Through financial technology innovation and process optimization, this collaboration aims to seamlessly integrate digital RMB payment methods into the clearing and settlement process for commodity spot transactions, offering customers enhanced convenience and diverse settlement options.
Notably, Industrial Bank obtained approval as a member of Shanghai Clearing House for commodity spot clearing in 2022, enabling the bank to provide real-time, cross-bank, standardized, and efficient fund clearing and settlement services for dealer commodity spot transactions. In addition to expanding the self-operated clearing business, the bank is committed to accelerating the development of the agent clearing business and actively venturing into new markets, particularly those related to commodity trading. As of the end of June 2023, the bank has achieved a cumulative liquidation amount of 25.56 billion yuan, a testament to its growing influence in the financial landscape.
This strategic move represents yet another innovative step for Industrial Bank as it continues to explore and expand the application scenarios of the digital yuan. Looking ahead, the bank remains dedicated to deepening its involvement in the digital RMB application for commodity trading. By doing so, it seeks to further contribute to the high-quality development of the real economy and accumulate valuable experiences that can be replicated and referenced for the broader application and promotion of the digital yuan.
Growing adoption of the digital yuan in the Chinese banking sector and beyond
In a broader context, Chinese banks actively embrace the digital yuan in various operations. With Industrial Bank’s successful launch of the CBDC-powered settlement service for bulk commodity spot clearing, other financial institutions are also gearing up to follow suit. Seven additional banks have expressed their intentions to provide similar services, signaling the growing acceptance and adoption of the digital yuan in China’s financial landscape.
The move towards CBDC adoption extends beyond banks alone. The Central People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is actively engaging regional banks in its pilot program, aiming to widen the scope of digital yuan implementation. Notably, the Tianjin Binhai Rural Commercial Bank’s Chengxi branch issued its first-ever personal digital yuan loan to a customer in Qinghai Province. This initiative showcases the versatility and potential applications of the digital yuan in various financial transactions.
Moreover, Chinese banks have already introduced wealth management products that could enable traders to utilize the digital yuan for purchasing securities. Notable developments in this regard include the Bank of China’s involvement in the PBoC’s Hong Kong cross-border payments pilot and the government-owned telecoms firms’ launch of SIM card-based offline wallets.
