TheDinarian
News • Business • Investing & Finance
China’s three lessons about driving CBDC adoption
March 01, 2023
post photo preview

Setting the scene

A few years ago, the surging usage of digital payments platforms like WeChat and Alipay saw most merchants stop accepting cash and replace their traditional tills with QR codes at every checkout counter. At that time, my seventy-year-old grandma had to ask me to teach her how to transfer money using WeChat. Like millions of other elderly or marginalized people, she was being excluded by digitalization.

Central bank digital currencies (CBDC) have the potential to address some types of financial exclusion. But for that to happen, uptake has to be broad and integration into existing systems needs to be done carefully.

Scaling uptake of central bank-issued digital currencies (CBDC) has proven difficult for many issuing countries. But China’s experience suggests that this can be turned around. Even though it is still in pilot, the e-CNY has a considerable reach and transaction frequency. The most recent numbers show that it is being used in 23 cities and reaching a total transaction value of around 83 billion Rmb.

This is a dramatic contrast to other issuing countries, where adoption rates are considerably lower. Take Bahama’s Sand Dollar: at the end of 2021, 20,000 individuals were actively using it, and it represented only 0.1% of total currency in circulation. Meanwhile, in Nigeria a lack of demand and public awareness resulted in such low usage of the e-Naira that the Central Bank of Nigeria limited cash withdrawals in an effort to stimulate usage.

The reasons China stands apart hold useful lessons for other countries seeking to drive uptake as a way to improve financial inclusion. In particular, three features of their rollout suggest useful lessons:

1. Foster integration with the pre-existing payments ecosystem

A CBDC is just one type of payment instrument available to citizens. Unless it works just as well as any other form of payment, adoption will struggle. Particularly in countries that already have well-established payments systems, consumers may have little motivation to switch to yet another payment tool.

This point is underlined by the World Economic Forum, which suggests that multi-stakeholder engagement from the public and private sectors is crucial to the future of any CBDC regime. One example of this is cooperation with existing payment firms, which we see in China.

The country’s two dominant payments providers – WeChat and Alipay – together account for 94% of the market. Users have become locked into these two apps since they are fast, easy to use, and widely accepted. To capitalize on this ubiquitous usage, the People’s Bank of China (POBC) teamed up with the two companies to offer an e-CNY payment option within their apps, thereby seamlessly incorporating the CBDC into users’ everyday financial activities. Beyond the immediate boost to CBDC usage, interoperability with private payment systems can also set the stage for future cooperation with other private firms such as e-commerce platforms.

Public-private sector integration can be an especially fruitful approach, since CBDC is designed to complement the current forms of money from the outset, not replace them. Implementing a CBDC without appropriate integration into the established private payment infrastructure makes it harder to grow usage rates. However, every country has its own unique payments landscape – meaning it must make its own choices on how best to collaborate with the private sector.

2. Offer a variety of offline payment types

China’s second measure to drive adoption involves providing a range of offline payments methods around the core CBDC.

To grow usage across all demographic groups, it’s important to be able to reach specific cohorts who are less digitally adept. So it’s especially vital that China – the country with the world’s largest total elderly population of 65 or above – takes its senior citizens’ needs into account when designing its payment solutions, including offline ones. For example, the e-CNY “visual card” displays the consumption amount, balance, and offline availability through an electronic ink screen window on the card, which is specifically designed to make it easy for elderly people to manage their accounts. And for children who may not have access to a smartphone, the e-CNY system includes physical wallets in all shapes and sizes such as watches, keyrings, wristbands and even earbud cases.

Offering various offline payment methods is also aimed at closing the digital divide. While digital transformation has enabled a large proportion of the population to access mobile money, there’s still unmet demand from people who don’t have smartphones or lack internet literacy.

The e-CNY example shows that offline payments can occur in various formats beyond a physical payment card. And making CBDC networkable into all kinds of devices – from mobile phones to wristbands – enhances financial inclusion and enables gradual cultural change as those categories of users who are uncomfortable with digital money transition gradually via offline payment methods that look more familiar to them.

3. Create carefully-targeted government incentives

Financial incentives offered by the government are maybe the most direct lever to boost CBDC adoption. It is important to design incentives carefully to encourage users to continue to use CBDC rather than just prompting a one-time transaction. 

In China, 321.2 million RMB in total was distributed as “red packets.” The rollout went through 17 rounds in eight cities, generating some 620 million e-CNY transactions, and was also networked into broader commercial activity. Citizens took part in a government lottery, with the winners receiving a “red packet” that they could spend at designated retailers, platforms and in-app merchant terminals during a preset time period. An equivalent discount was also applied to users placing orders with e-CNY. To embed the CBDC into citizens’ everyday lives and maximize usage, the PBOC cooperated with over 50 high-frequency usage applications including food delivery and ride apps. The results were dramatic: For example, the food delivery app Meituan Waimai saw its average daily e-CNY transaction volume reach 43.6 million.

China’s experience suggests that financial incentives need to meet two conditions if they’re to generate long-term acceptance of the CBDC. First, the central bank must cooperate with a mix of both large enterprises and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to ensure merchant variety. Second, it needs to team up with high-usage partners to increase the opportunities for using the CBDC.

Drawing out the lessons for future CBCD implementations

The CBDC adoption measures used by China may help to inform the future course for CBDC pilot schemes across the world – and especially in countries such as Sweden (with Swish) and Kenya (with M-Pesa) that have similar payments landscapes to China and well-established digital payment systems.

With all countries entering uncharted territory with their CBDCs, it’s vital that they learn from each other’s experiences to help them reap the full benefits on offer, including closing the digital divide. My grandma would certainly have welcomed the ease and accessibility of CBDC – and I suspect yours would too!

Link

community logo
Join the TheDinarian Community
To read more articles like this, sign up and join my community today
0
What else you may like…
Videos
Podcasts
Posts
Articles
Trump just posted this about chemtrails 👀

“The enthusiasm for experiments that would pump pollutants into the high atmosphere has set off alarm bells here at the TRUMP EPA.”

00:02:52
The future of crypto = access, trust, transparency.

@evernorthxrp gives institutional + public investors simple, regulated, liquid exposure to XRP – and we’re compounding that value.

Watch below to learn how. 🎥👇

OP: @Ashgoblue

00:01:32
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong on CNBC: Crypto Market Structure Bill is CLOSE to passing 👀
00:00:39
👉 Coinbase just launched an AI agent for Crypto Trading

Custom AI assistants that print money in your sleep? 🔜

The future of Crypto x AI is about to go crazy.

👉 Here’s what you need to know:

💠 'Based Agent' enables creation of custom AI agents
💠 Users set up personalized agents in < 3 minutes
💠 Equipped w/ crypto wallet and on-chain functions
💠 Capable of completing trades, swaps, and staking
💠 Integrates with Coinbase’s SDK, OpenAI, & Replit

👉 What this means for the future of Crypto:

1. Open Access: Democratized access to advanced trading
2. Automated Txns: Complex trades + streamlined on-chain activity
3. AI Dominance: Est ~80% of crypto 👉txns done by AI agents by 2025

🚨 I personally wouldn't bet against Brian Armstrong and Jesse Pollak.

👉 Coinbase just launched an AI agent for Crypto Trading
Pyth 🤝 Hyperliquid

The HIP-3 Ecosystem Map:

Full report and projection of year one HIP-3 volumes dropping tomorrow on @MessariCrypto

post photo preview

🚨JUST IN: POLYMARKET TO LAUNCH A TOKEN!

CMO Matthew Modabber confirms a native $POLY token and airdrop. Polymarket is eyeing a new funding round valuing it up to $15B.

⚡ BREAKING: GOOGLE’S WILLOW QUANTUM PROCESSOR COMPLETES 3.2 YEARS OF COMPUTATION IN JUST 2 HOURS, 13,000× FASTER THAN THE WORLD’S MOST POWERFUL SUPERCOMPUTER, SPARKING FRESH CONCERNS OVER BITCOIN’S ENCRYPTION SECURITY.

post photo preview
post photo preview
New Human Force
Join this Now! YOU have what it takes!

They are in our solar system, and in our event-stream in this Eternal Now.

Officialdom is clueless.

They think we are going to be at WAR with the Aliens.

Officialdom is very stupid.

Aliens is here. It’s not WAR. It’s Contention.

There is a difference.

Officialdom is clueless, still living in the last Millennium.

Aliens is here.

The Field in which we contend is This Eternal Now.

ALL HUMANS LIVE HERE, and ONLY HERE, in this

ETERNAL NOW.

It’s a Field of potentials, of pending Manifestation, this continuous event-stream of karma in which we have always lived our body’s Life.

This Eternal Now has always been our body’s Field of Contention.

The Aliens is here, in our Eternal Now.

Our common, shared, reality that we all continuously co-create now has Aliens.

It’s getting very complex in here.

Officialdom is clueless. They see the Aliens. They are freaking out. They think you are children, when it is their small minds, trapped in a reality that is only grit, mud, and ‘random chance’ who are childish.

Officialdom is stupid. They will and are reacting badly. As is their way, they are trying to hide shit from you. Silly grit bound minds don’t realize you can see everything from within the Eternal Now. They have yet to grasp that what they perceive as this Matterium, filled with ‘matter’, is but a hardening of our previous (past) internal states of being.

WAR happens in the Matterium.

Contention occurs within this Eternal Now where Consciousness shapes the manifesting event-stream.

YOU know this to be fact. You are a co-creator.

Contention with Aliens is happening in this instant in this Eternal Now.

Officialdom ain’t doing shit. They are still stuck in trying to move matter around to affect unfolding circumstances. That’s redoing the mirror trying to affect the reflection. Dumb fucks….

It’s up to US. To the New Humans. Those of us who live in this Eternal Now. Those of us who see that our body’s Lives (the Chain that cannot be broken) are expressions of the Ontology revealing itself to itself. It’s up to us guys.

We are not an Army. That’s a concept from the past, from before the emergence of the New Humans. We are a Force. A self-organizing collective with leadership resident in each, and every participant.

We are the New Human Force. By the time officialdom starts to speak about the Aliens in near-factual terms, we will already be engaging them in this Eternal Now.

By the time officialdom begins to move matter around (space ships & such) thinking it’s War, we will already be suffering casualties in this Eternal Now. That part is inevitable. It’s how we learn.

By the time officialdom realizes that some shit is going on in places and ways beyond its conception, we will already be pushing our dominance onto our partners in this First Contention, the Aliens. Nage cannot train without Uke.

Just as officialdom is scrambling to research the Ontology, this Eternal Now, and the event-stream, we will be settling terms with our new partners, the Aliens.

Come, join with us. It’s going to be a hellacious Contention.

We ARE the NEW HUMANS!

Together we are the Force that cannot be defeated.

Start YOUR training in this instance of this Eternal NOW.

Consume Neville Goddard videos as though all of human existence depended on YOUR mind and YOUR active, effective, imaginings!

It’s not a question of Mind over Matter as there is only Mind and it cares not for Matter. That’s residue.

Source

🙏 Donations Accepted 🙏

If you find value in my content, consider showing your support via:

💳 PayPal: 
1) Simply scan the QR code below 📲
2) or visit https://www.paypal.me/thedinarian

🔗 Crypto Donations👇
XRP: r9pid4yrQgs6XSFWhMZ8NkxW3gkydWNyQX
XLM: GDMJF2OCHN3NNNX4T4F6POPBTXK23GTNSNQWUMIVKESTHMQM7XDYAIZT
XDC: xdcc2C02203C4f91375889d7AfADB09E207Edf809A6

Read full Article
post photo preview
The Great Onboarding: US Government Anchors Global Economy into Web3 via Pyth Network

For years, the crypto world speculated that the next major cycle would be driven by institutional adoption, with Wall Street finally legitimizing Bitcoin through vehicles like ETFs. While that prediction has indeed materialized, a recent development signifies a far more profound integration of Web3 into the global economic fabric, moving beyond mere financial products to the very infrastructure of data itself. The U.S. government has taken a monumental step, cementing Web3's role as a foundational layer for modern data distribution. This door, once opened, is poised to remain so indefinitely.

The U.S. Department of Commerce has officially partnered with leading blockchain oracle providers, Pyth Network and Chainlink, to distribute critical official economic data directly on-chain. This initiative marks a historic shift, bringing immutable, transparent, and auditable data from the federal government itself onto decentralized networks. This is not just a technological upgrade; it's a strategic move to enhance data accuracy, transparency, and accessibility for a global audience.

Specifically, Pyth Network has been selected to publish Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data, starting with quarterly releases going back five years, with plans to expand to a broader range of economic datasets. Chainlink, the other key partner, will provide data feeds from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), including Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index. This crucial economic information will be made available across a multitude of blockchain networks, including major ecosystems like Ethereum, Avalanche, Base, Bitcoin, Solana, Tron, Stellar, Arbitrum One, Polygon PoS, and Optimism.

This development is closer to science fiction than traditional finance. The same oracle network, Pyth, that secures data for over 350 decentralized applications (dApps) across more than 50 blockchains, processing over $2.5 trillion in total trading volume through its oracles, is now the system of record for the United States' core economic indicators. Pyth's extensive infrastructure, spanning over 107 blockchains and supporting more than 600 applications, positions it as a trusted source for on-chain data. This is not about speculative assets; it's about leveraging proven, robust technology for critical public services.

The significance of this collaboration cannot be overstated. By bringing official statistics on-chain, the U.S. government is embracing cryptographic verifiability and immutable publication, setting a new precedent for how governments interact with decentralized technology. This initiative aligns with broader transparency goals and is supported by Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, positioning the U.S. as a world leader in finance and blockchain innovation. The decision by a federal entity to trust decentralized oracles with sensitive economic data underscores the growing institutional confidence in these networks.

This is the cycle of the great onboarding. The distinction between "Web2" and "Web3" is rapidly becoming obsolete. When government data, institutional flows, and grassroots builders all operate on the same decentralized rails, we are simply talking about the internet—a new iteration, yes, but the internet nonetheless: an immutable internet where data is not only published but also verified and distributed in real-time.

Pyth Network stands as tangible proof that this technology serves a vital purpose. It demonstrates that the industry has moved beyond abstract "crypto tech" to offering solutions that address real-world needs and are now actively sought after and understood by traditional entities. Most importantly, it proves that Web3 is no longer seeking permission; it has received the highest validation a system can receive—the trust of governments and markets alike.

This is not merely a fleeting trend; it's a crowning moment in global adoption. The U.S. government has just validated what many in the Web3 space have been building towards for years: that Web3 is not a sideshow, but a foundational layer for the future. The current cycle will be remembered as the moment the world definitively crossed this threshold, marking the last great opportunity to truly say, "we were early."

🙏 Donations Accepted 🙏

If you find value in my content, consider showing your support via:

💳 PayPal: 
1) Simply scan the QR code below 📲
2) or visit https://www.paypal.me/thedinarian

🔗 Crypto Donations👇
XRP: r9pid4yrQgs6XSFWhMZ8NkxW3gkydWNyQX
XLM: GDMJF2OCHN3NNNX4T4F6POPBTXK23GTNSNQWUMIVKESTHMQM7XDYAIZT
XDC: xdcc2C02203C4f91375889d7AfADB09E207Edf809A6

Read full Article
post photo preview
US Dept of Commerce to publish GDP data on blockchain

On Tuesday during a televised White House cabinet meeting, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced the intention to publish GDP statistics on blockchains. Today Chainlink and Pyth said they were selected as the decentralized oracles to distribute the data.

Lutnick said, “The Department of Commerce is going to start issuing its statistics on the blockchain because you are the crypto President. And we are going to put out GDP on the blockchain, so people can use the blockchain for data distribution. And then we’re going to make that available to the entire government. So, all of you can do it. We’re just ironing out all the details.”

The data includes Real GDP and the PCE Price Index, which reflects changes in the prices of domestic consumer goods and services. The statistics are released monthly and quarterly. The biggest initial use will likely be by on-chain prediction markets. But as more data comes online, such as broader inflation data or interest rates from the Federal Reserve, it could be used to automate various financial instruments. Apart from using the data in smart contracts, sources of tamperproof data 👉will become increasingly important for generative AI.

While it would be possible to procure the data from third parties, it is always ideal to get it from the source to ensure its accuracy. Getting data directly from government sources makes it tamperproof, provided the original data feed has not been manipulated before it reaches the oracle.

Source

🙏 Donations Accepted 🙏

If you find value in my content, consider showing your support via:

💳 PayPal: 
1) Simply scan the QR code below 📲
2) or visit https://www.paypal.me/thedinarian

🔗 Crypto
XRP: r9pid4yrQgs6XSFWhMZ8NkxW3gkydWNyQX
XLM: GDMJF2OCHN3NNNX4T4F6POPBTXK23GTNSNQWUMIVKESTHMQM7XDYAIZT
XDC: xdcc2C02203C4f91375889d7AfADB09E207Edf809A6

Read full Article
See More
Available on mobile and TV devices
google store google store app store app store
google store google store app tv store app tv store amazon store amazon store roku store roku store
Powered by Locals