Digital currency strengthens SMS signal.

In the era of digital economy, people have higher and higher requirements for the security and convenience of payment, and the research and development and application of legal digital currency has also become the general trend.

In recent years, many countries around the world are stepping up their research on digital currency, and China is no exception. At present, the research and development of digital RMB in China is progressing steadily.

Recently, the Ministry of Commerce issued the Notice on Printing and Distributing the Overall Plan for Comprehensively Deepening the Innovation and Development of Service Trade, which announced the pilot areas of digital RMB.

At present, the digital RMB pilot project is still "4+ 1", that is, the internal closed pilot test is carried out in Shenzhen, Suzhou, xiong'an new area, Chengdu and the future Winter Olympics scenes, and there is no change. Relevant persons pointed out that the 28 pilot projects in Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai uploaded online are actually pilot projects for comprehensively deepening the innovation and development of service trade.

What is digital RMB?

Will cash payment be replaced in the future?

For consumers in China, mobile payment has been deeply integrated into our daily life. You may have such doubts: What exactly is digital RMB? What's the difference between it and the familiar electronic payment method? Will future cash be replaced?

China's legal digital currency is that the People's Bank of China combines digital currency with electronic payment tools, with the goal of replacing some cash. Simply put, digital currency of China People's Bank can be regarded as digital RMB cash.

Digital currency is essentially different from virtual currencies such as Bitcoin and Libra. The latter has no national credit and no legal compensation. Digital currency, the People's Bank of China, is the legal tender guaranteed by national credit, and it has the same effect as cash in this respect.

From the usage scenario, digital currency, that is, the central bank does not pay interest, and can be used for small-scale, retail and high-frequency business scenarios, which is not much different from using paper money. It doesn't depend on bank accounts and payment accounts, and users can use it as long as they have digital currency wallets. In addition, digital currency, the central bank, adopts the latest dual offline technology, which can be used even if there is no cell phone signal.

Dong Ximiao, a special researcher at the National Finance and Development Laboratory, said that as long as the mobile phones with digital currency wallets are touched together, the transfer or payment can be easily completed.

Experts said that in the future, digital currency, the central bank, will replace some cash, but not all paper money. Dong Ximiao, a special researcher at the National Finance and Development Laboratory, said that paper money will exist in China for a long time, and our users' habits are also different. Cash payment and non-cash payment will coexist for a long time.

At the same time, the digital currency issued by the central bank started with the replacement of banknotes and coins in circulation. That is to say, assuming that the currency in circulation now is 100 yuan, the central bank digital currency will replace this 100 yuan equivalently.

Xu Yuan, Senior Research Fellow, Digital Finance Research Center, Peking University: The new digital currency and paper money are exchanged one-to-one, so now commercial banks have to exchange the previous currency to obtain this kind of digital currency, and the total amount will not increase during the pilot period.

When can I use digital RMB?

Although it has entered the pilot testing stage, it does not mean that the digital RMB has really landed. Before it is put into use, it needs to be tested in many aspects, such as theoretical reliability, system stability and risk controllability.

The central bank has repeatedly stated that there is no timetable for the launch of digital RMB. If the digital RMB pilot test is successful, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics may be able to "see the beauty".

The digital RMB is coming! Recently, the Ministry of Commerce issued the "Overall Plan for Comprehensively Deepening the Innovation and Development of Service Trade", which mentioned that "the pilot of digital RMB should be carried out in qualified pilot areas such as Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, Yangtze River Delta, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the central and western regions". Promoting the use of digital RMB in areas with the most developed economy and the strongest foreign trade strength in China will undoubtedly have a positive impact on the digital innovation of China's service trade and the internationalization of RMB.

Digital currency has replaced the cash in currency and provided a new digital payment method besides the current electronic payment methods such as bank account and bank card. With industrial upgrading and high-quality economic development, service industry has become a pillar industry for economic development and employment increase. After entering the era of digital economy, digital trade has become a new trend of international trade, and countries have formulated industrial policies to stimulate the development of digital economy and seize the favorable position in the value chain of international industrial chain. China's innovation and promotion of the use of digital RMB will help to enhance the international competitiveness of service trade and push China from a big trading country to a powerful trading country.

First, adapt to the requirements of economic digitalization and enhance the ability of financial services to the real economy. Digital technology is the core of the new technological revolution and the key to reconstruct the global industrial chain value chain. Which country can take the lead in widely applying digital technology in manufacturing and service industries will gain greater technological advantages, higher total factor productivity and more trade added value. Since the international financial crisis in 2008, China has increased its investment in R&D and "internet plus" innovation, and is committed to the development from "Made in China" to "Created in China" and "Serving in China". Finance is the blood of economic development and the most important producer service industry. Economic digitalization has profoundly changed the financial format and operation mode, and most financial services have shifted from offline to online. Digital currency is an innovative achievement of digital technology in the currency field. As long as you have a mobile phone, you can pay for business even if you don't have a bank account, which greatly improves financial inclusiveness and enhances the convenience of consumption.

Second, give full play to China's advantages in the fields of 5G technology and digital currency, and expand the scale of trade. Pilot projects of digital RMB in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, Yangtze River Delta, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and conditional pilot areas in the central and western regions, and gradually improve the system and mechanism of digital currency's issuance, use and risk control, can explore the formation of new payment paths and channels for cross-border retail trade at the C-end of e-commerce platform, and connect them with high-frequency application scenarios closely related to consumers' lives. Digital trade such as e-commerce and internet trade is in the ascendant, and the C-side trade space and development potential are huge. The use of digital RMB in cross-border trade means that it provides a new, convenient and safe payment method for countries with underdeveloped financial industry and high financial constraints, or countries with few overseas financial institutions that are inconvenient to open bank accounts, which is conducive to expanding the scale of China's trade and promoting the diversified development of trade.

Third, create a new business card of "China Service" and enhance the international image and influence of RMB. If we say that in the past decade, the high-speed rail is a beautiful business card representing the speed of China; Then in the next decade, digital RMB will become a shining business card for China's financial innovation. In early 2020, digital currency conducted pilot projects in specific consumption scenarios in Shenzhen, Chengdu, Suzhou and xiong'an new area. Digital currency Research Institute of the Central Bank also formally reached a strategic cooperation agreement with Didi Chuxing to jointly study and explore the innovative application of statutory digital currency in the field of smart travel. Digital currency is the product of digital technology. The application of digital technology needs the technical support of information platforms such as Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing and 5G. The use of digital currency embodies the institutional mechanism, mode and technological innovation of China on the basis of digital economy. Taking the lead in using digital currency to promote currency upgrading indicates China's firm determination and strong innovation ability to develop a green economy, which is conducive to enhancing the image and international acceptance of RMB as an advanced technology.

At present, digital currency is a new thing, and its popularization and application will not be smooth. In particular, promoting the use of digital RMB in cross-border trade may encounter many difficulties in payment habits, risk management, payment system, financial supervision, infrastructure and so on. This requires accurate positioning, clear application scope of digital currency, and a good balance between development and risk management; At the same time, it is necessary to strengthen the construction of new infrastructure and consolidate the operational foundation of digital currency; Improve financial openness, reduce the control of trade payment, improve the convenience of using RMB, and enhance the subjective initiative of enterprises and individuals to use RMB to pay.