[Epoch Times, July 20, 2021](Epoch Times reporter Xie Jiaxuan reported) China (CPC) Central Bank issued a white paper on Friday stating that it will expand the “digital renminbi” test target during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and will International business people and overseas tourists are included in the scope of application and can be used without opening a local bank account. These new pilot measures have attracted the attention of the US Congress.
The white paper (pdf) states: “The public without bank accounts can enjoy basic financial services through digital RMB wallets. Overseas residents who come to China for a short period of time can open digital RMB wallets without opening a bank account in Mainland China. China’s daily payment needs.”
“Since the end of 2019, the People’s Bank of China has followed the principles of stability, safety, controllability, innovation, and practicality, and carried out digital RMB pilot tests in Shenzhen, Suzhou, Xiongan, Chengdu and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.”
On Monday (July 19), members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Marsha Blackburn, Roger Wicker andCynthia Lummis’s digital RMB may involve the CCPOn the grounds of espionage and data security issues, it is strongly recommended that the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) prohibit American athletes from acquiring or using the Chinese Communist Party’s electronic currency, the digital renminbi, during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
They asked USOPC to explain their requirements within 30 days.
The lawmakers wrote in a letter to the U.S. Olympic Committee chairman Susanne Lyons, “The digital renminbi may be used by Beijing to monitor Olympic athletes.”
“Although the CCP insists that their efforts are to achieve the digitization of banknotes and coins, Olympic athletes should note that these digital renminbi may be used to monitor Chinese citizens and people visiting China, and the (surveillance) scale will be unprecedented. Yes, they want people to keep their digital renminbi wallets on their smartphones and continue to use them when they return.”
The lawmakers said, “The CCP is already using digital payment platforms to monitor, threaten and arrest Chinese citizens.”
“Given that the Chinese Communist Party is using emerging technologies to suppress the Uyghurs, the people of Hong Kong, and those fighting for freedom of speech (cases) across China, (we are) particularly concerned. These concerns are not hypothetical. On the contrary, digital payments like WeChat The platform has been used to monitor, threaten and arrest Chinese citizens.”
The lawmakers pointed out that “the digital renminbi is the digital currency of the People’s Bank of China (Central Bank). It is completely controlled by the People’s Bank of China and can be tracked and traced by the Central Bank.”
Currently, the digital renminbi is still in the experimental stage. The country’s central bank announced on Friday that the transaction volume of its digital renminbi experiment has reached 5.3 billion U.S. dollars, and more than 20.8 million individuals use virtual wallets throughout China.
Before the Central Bank of China released its white paper, Li Bo, the deputy governor of its bank, revealed at the Boao Forum for Asia in April that the authorities intend to allow international users to try out the digital renminbi for the first time during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The applicable target includes foreign athletes and tourists.
Fan Yifei, who is also the vice president, also said at the State Council’s regular policy briefing in July, “The Beijing Winter Olympics scene is a key area for the next pilot.”
Editor in charge: Li Yuan #
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