China’s Equivalent Of Uber To Trial Digital Yuan
- Ride-hailing giant DiDi has entered into a partnership with China’s central bank to trial its upcoming Central Bank Digital Currency.
- Valued at over $56 billion, the company claims to have more than 500 million users across China.
Image by DiDi Chuxing
DiDi Chuxing, the Chinese equivalent to Uber, has entered into a “strategic partnership” with China’s central bank to work on the upcoming digital yuan project, Bloomberg reported on 8 June.
According to the publication, the new partnership between the ride-hailing giant and the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) will help accelerate the application of the country’s digital yuan project, called Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DC/EP). Reportedly, the collaboration will attempt to bring the DC/EP to DiDi’s large-scale transportation network, where a pilot program will be implemented in accordance with the “rigorous safety, security and governance standards”.
DiDi further stated:
“The partnership is a key milestone in DiDi’s ongoing initiatives to enhance the interconnectivity of online and offline economic sectors in China, as the government seeks to support the development of the real economy sectors with innovative financial services.”
Valued at $56 billion, DiDi is currently the world’s second highest valued unicorn startup, backed by investments from SoftBank, Apple, Alibaba and Tencent. The firm claims to have over 500 million users across China, and offers services taxi-hailing, private car hailing, automobile solutions, two-wheelers, logistics and delivery.
Earlier this year, the firm completed a $500 million fundraiser, lead by SoftBank Group, for its autonomous driving subsidiary. According to the latest reports, DiDi’s latest plans are to release more than one million self-driving cars by 2030.
While the details of the DC/EP rollout have remained unclear, DiDi’s platform will be one of the first real applications for China’s digital yuan. With that said, there is still no official launch date for the country’s CBDC, despite the PBoC’s pilot tests being carried out in various locations across the country, including the cities of Shenzhen, Suzhou, Xiongan, Chengdu and the future site of the winter Olympics.
- The head of China’s central bank digital currency institute said the e-CNY has undergone a major upgrade, and should be made available as an option in all retail scenarios.
- The PBOC official noted that platforms can integrate the CBDC in the short term using QR codes, and focus on upgrading their payment tools in the long run.
Office building of the People’s Bank of China. Flickr
- The team behind Multichain confirmed that their CEO was detained in China on 21 May, and that all of his electronic devices were confiscated by the local police.
- The CEO’s sister moved the project’s remaining funds to wallets under her control on 9 July, and several days later was also detained by the police, leaving the team with no funds.
- A new 13-count superseding indictment has accused Sam Bankman Fried of bribing one or more Chinese officials in order to unfreeze accounts connected to Alameda.
- In early 2021, Chinese authorities froze certain Alameda accounts on two of China’s largest crypto exchanges”, which reportedly held more than $1 billion worth of crypto assets.