Digital transactions cross 2b yuan

Bloomberg and Winnie Lee

China has witnessed more than four million transactions totaling over 2 billion yuan (HK$2.32 billion) in its digital currency so far, People's Bank of China governor Yi Gang said yesterday.

Speaking at the Hong Kong Fintech Week conference, Yi said the pilot program on the rollout of a digital currency in four cities has been smooth.

He believed cash and digital yuan would co-exist in the future.

Growth in contactless banking during the virus pandemic has created challenges for central banks, which have to manage the convenience for consumers while ensuring their safety, he said. "Protecting consumers' private information is a challenge," Yi emphasized.

Fintech companies have some key advantages over commercial banks in terms of developing a customer base and managing risk.

Large technology companies do not need to expand branches to attract a large number of customers from fintech products and customers have high loyalty.

In addition, technology companies have more room to control risks, making their products compete with traditional banks.