A senior official from China’s central bank has clearly defined the mission of the soon-to-be-launched digital Yuan, during a conference in Singapore.
The head of the People’s Bank of China’s digital currency research institute, Mu Changchun said that China’s proposed digitized domestic currency is never an attempt to acquire full control of information relating to the public, Reuters reported Tuesday.
However, the goal is to balance privacy concerns and the authorities’ need for information, with Mu adding that the central bank understands “the demand from the general public [..] to keep anonymity by using paper money and coins.” He assured that they would give “those people who demand it, anonymity in their transactions.”
Also, the central bank will keep the balance between the ‘controllable anonymity’ and anti-money laundering, including Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF), and other issues related to tax, online gambling, and more.
Another reason for the move, according to the official, is to boost financial inclusion in rural areas, as well as to create a new system in case an issue arises in the current Chinese financial infrastructure. Mu reportedly said:
That is a balance we have to keep, and that is our goal. We are not seeking full control of the information of the general public.
He also expressed a belief that the digital currency will provide Beijing with unprecedented oversight over the flows of money, and equip the Chinese authorities with a degree of control over the economy, which most central banks possess.
A few details regarding the officially-named Digital Currency Electronic Payment notes that it will be powered by blockchain partially and distributed in a two-tier approach, from commercial banks and Institutions to the public.
Recently, Mu Changchun said that China’s digital currency would result in a “horse race,” once it launches. As China prepares to be the first country to release a digitized domestic currency, institutions, and commercial banks will compete to provide the best services using the digital currency.
