Singapore, China to Make Travel Purchases Efficient With Digital Yuan

For those planning to visit China soon, great news! In the recently held Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) in Tianjin, Singapore and China have inked a partnership agreement to make travel purchases easier and more efficient for tourists.

In a press release published earlier this month, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has unveiled that the agency, along with the Digital Currency Institute, People’s Bank of China (PBCDCI), will be launching their e-CNY Pilot project soon.

This will allow travellers from both countries to use e-CNY currency or digital yuan to make purchases during their overseas trips. According to the agency, this will help make tourism spending more efficient and convenient for both countries.

Aside from these, the two countries also signed a memorandum of understanding that allows them to collaborate on joint research on products and business areas, information exchange, and mutual visits, among others.

“MAS welcomes the new initiatives in digital finance and capital markets connectivity, as these will catalyse new financial flows between our financial centres, and deepen trade and economic relations between our economies,” said Leong Sing Chiong, deputy managing director at MAS, via the press statement.

Earlier this year, MAS also teamed up with Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to enable cross-border QR payments between Singapore and Malaysia.