After reporting earlier in the month that China’s central bank digital currency was ready for launch, a new report says that the coin could reach circulation as early as November.
China’s Digital Currency Launching in November
According to an update by Forbes, seven institutions will be the first to receive the digital currency, including retail giant Alibaba, Tencent, Union Pay, Bank of China and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. The latter constitute two of the world’s largest banks.
An anonymous source commenting on the situation told Forbes that the digital currency has been ready since last year, despite only recently making it to the public launchpad.
While China’s central bank is embracing the efficiency of a digital currency, its implementation will be no small feat. The seven initial institutions and subsequent banks will be responsible for dispersing the digital currency to 1.3 billion Chinese citizens, a process that is expected to occur gradually given the varying levels of technological adoption by region.
The source also claimed China hopes for the digital currency to make its way into US markets, saying, ‘“That’s the plan, but that won’t happen right away.”
