The People’s Bank of China has added eight commercial banks to its digital yuan operating network, taking the number of e-CNY service operators to 30 as the central bank continues expanding access to its state-backed digital currency.
According to an Aug. 17 statement from the People’s Bank of China, Ping An Bank, Hengfeng Bank, China Bohai Bank, Bank of Shanghai, Bank of Hangzhou, Huishang Bank, Bank of Changsha and Guangxi Beibu Gulf Bank have been approved as banking institutions permitted to operate digital yuan services.
The eight banks have also been connected to the central bank-side digital renminbi system, putting the technical link needed for them to provide e-CNY services in place. Customer-facing operations will begin after each institution completes its remaining business and technical preparations, the PBOC said.
With the additions, the number of authorized digital yuan operators has risen from 22 to 30. The central bank said it will continue bringing more institutions into the system under market-oriented and rule-based principles while seeking an open and fair competitive environment for digital renminbi services.
Digital yuan operator network has expanded rapidly in 2026
The latest additions come just over four months after the PBOC approved another group of banks to provide digital yuan services.
On April 2, the central bank added 12 institutions, including China CITIC Bank, China Everbright Bank, Hua Xia Bank, China Minsheng Bank, China Guangfa Bank, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, China Zheshang Bank, Bank of Ningbo, Bank of Jiangsu, Bank of Beijing, Bank of Nanjing and Bank of Suzhou.
That round increased the number of banking operators to 22, according to the PBOC announcement at the time. The newly approved institutions were similarly required to complete business and technical preparations before commencing digital yuan operations.
Adding another eight banks in August has taken the network to 30 operators within the same year, extending participation to institutions including national joint-stock banks and several city and regional commercial banks.
The PBOC tied the latest expansion to China’s 15th Five-Year Plan for 2026–2030, which calls for the steady development of the digital renminbi. The central bank said the additional operators are intended to improve access to e-CNY services and respond to demand for payment options that are secure, convenient and efficient.
China has been developing the digital yuan through a two-tier structure in which the central bank controls the underlying currency and infrastructure while approved commercial institutions handle services for users. Earlier PBOC documentation described commercial banks as a key part of the distribution model, allowing the central bank to use existing financial infrastructure instead of serving every retail user directly.
Digital yuan now operates more like a bank deposit
The expansion of the operator network follows a major change to how digital yuan balances are treated within China’s banking system.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, banks were allowed to pay interest on verified digital yuan wallets after the PBOC changed the framework governing e-CNY balances.
As crypto.news previously reported, verified digital yuan balances became eligible for interest under the same self-regulatory arrangements used to determine rates on conventional deposits. The balances also received protection under China’s national deposit insurance system.
Before the change, the e-CNY had primarily operated as a digital form of cash. Under the revised structure, commercial banks can manage eligible digital yuan balances within their asset-liability operations, while non-bank payment firms must keep customer reserve funds in digital yuan at a 100% reserve ratio, according to the PBOC framework.
Official figures cited when the changes were announced showed that the digital yuan had processed 3.48 billion transactions by November 2025. Chinese authorities have continued testing new uses for the currency after years of domestic pilot programs involving retail payments, public services and commercial transactions.
The addition of more commercial banks gives the PBOC another route to extend e-CNY services through institutions that already maintain customer relationships and payment infrastructure across different parts of China.
Cross-border digital yuan use has also advanced
Alongside domestic banking changes, Chinese institutions have continued testing digital yuan infrastructure for cross-border payments.
In July, the Shanghai branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and ICBC Singapore completed the first China-Singapore payment through the upgraded Digital Currency Express comprehensive settlement platform, known as CBETS.
The transaction covered nearly 10 million yuan in import shipping costs for a subsidiary of a centrally owned enterprise. Funds were settled entirely in digital renminbi and reached the recipient in Singapore on the same day, according to Mobile Payment Network.
CBETS was developed by the International Operation Center for the digital renminbi under the guidance of the PBOC’s Digital Currency Research Institute. The upgraded infrastructure combines earlier cross-border payment, blockchain service and digital asset systems while supporting ISO 20022 messaging standards used across international financial networks.
ICBC has also established digital yuan payment and collection links involving Singapore and Laos through the system, while its Inner Mongolia branch completed a 220 million yuan transfer to Hong Kong through the multilateral CBDC bridge, according to the same July report.
Guangdong is seeking more digital yuan payment trials
Regional authorities have also included e-CNY expansion in financial policy proposals for the 2026–2030 period.
Earlier in August, Guangdong published a draft development plan proposing more cross-border e-CNY trials within the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone. The consultation document called for additional digital yuan use cases alongside cross-border financial products, offshore finance, green finance, asset management and fintech testing.
The Guangdong proposal also called for larger cross-border digital yuan payment programs and further development of the Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect scheme. Public consultation on the draft is scheduled to remain open until Sept. 5.
According to the same proposal, financial institutions in the free trade zone could also be encouraged to develop cross-border supply chain finance products and intellectual property pledge financing, while authorities intend to continue trials involving cross-border credit asset transfers and multi-currency integrated accounts.
The upgraded international digital yuan platform had signed direct participant agreements with an initial group of 26 financial institutions by June, including ICBC Asia, Bank of China Hong Kong, Standard Chartered China and ICBC branches operating in Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Macau and Qatar.
