China's digital RMB trial has for the first time included a privately owned bank, indicating a further expansion of applications and the country's firm attitude in driving the pilot program, analysts said.
Zhejiang E-Commerce Bank Co Ltd, which is based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, became the seventh bank in China to offer the testing of central bank digital currency, or e-CNY. Users can now download a digital wallet through a designated app.
The Ant Group, e-commerce giant Alibaba's financial technology arm, has the largest share in the bank, at 30 percent, and owns the third-party payment platform Alipay.
The inclusion of the privately owned bank marks a new step in the e-CNY trial, said analysts, and the tested scenarios are continually increasing.