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Xinhua News Agency: Digital currency is not equal to blockchain

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As the digital renminbi wallet officially appeared in the public eye, the digital renminbi that revealed its true colors proved that some previous conjectures were "misreading".

Original title: "Digital RMB Red Envelope Pilot Ends, What's the Experience and Results? 》

Original source: Xinhua News Agency

The Shenzhen digital RMB red envelope pilot program that lasted for nearly a week ended successfully, and passed the "lucky ones" Pro-test, the digital renminbi has finally lifted the "mysterious veil". How is the payment experience of digital renminbi? What is the acceptance by consumers and merchants? What "true face" of digital RMB can be seen from this pilot activity?

The digital renminbi test is over, how is the payment experience?

At 21:05 on the 18th, as the code scanning gun in the cashier's hand made a "beep" sound, Ms. Li, a citizen of Shenzhen, went to a house in Luohu District The supermarket spent the last 59 yuan in her digital yuan wallet.

"The moment I spent all the digital renminbi, I was a little bit reluctant." Ms. Li told reporters that she used digital renminbi to buy drinks at convenience stores and went to bookstores I bought books, and bought snacks in the supermarket... Divide it into multiple transactions and use it in a planned way, just to experience more usage scenarios of digital RMB wallets. Every time she opens the digital renminbi wallet in front of everyone, it will attract a lot of attention.

The 10 million yuan digital renminbi red envelopes distributed by Shenzhen City this time were issued in the form of a "number lottery draw". Starting from 18:00 on October 12, the "lucky ones" who won the lottery started the payment experience of "buy, buy, buy". The pilot event ended at 24:00 on the 18th, and the unused red envelopes beyond the validity period will be withdrawn. Therefore, many people "reluctantly" spent the last penny in their digital RMB wallets on weekends.

At 21:00 on the 18th, Shenzhen citizen Zhao Quanhai spent all the 200 yuan red envelopes in his digital RMB wallet at a gas station at one time. "It will expire if you don't use it anymore, so come and experience it anyway." Zhao Quanhai told reporters, "The experience of scanning the code to pay is similar to that of WeChat and Alipay. But the difference is that it is not restricted by the network environment and does not need to be tied to the card. It is relatively smooth and convenient. Fast.”

According to the data released by the relevant departments of Shenzhen on the 19th, as of 24:00 on October 18, 47,573 individuals who have won the lottery have successfully received the "Lixiang Luohu "Digital RMB Red Envelope", 62,788 transactions using red envelopes, with a transaction amount of 8.764 million yuan.

After the transformation of the payment system, how is the acceptance of merchants?

One of the purposes of Shenzhen’s digital RMB red envelope pilot program is to stimulate consumption and stimulate domestic demand. According to the data provided by the relevant departments of Shenzhen, in addition to the red envelope transaction, some of the winning individuals also recharged their digital wallets, and the recharge consumption amounted to 901,000 yuan.

In order to support the circulation and use of digital renminbi during the pilot period, there are 3,389 merchants in Luohu District, Shenzhen that have completed the digital renminbi system transformation, including shopping malls, supermarkets, living Services, daily retail, catering consumption and other four categories. Consumers can make unlimited consumption through barcode payment or near-field payment.

"Bank of China and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China provided us with relevant equipment, we only need to upgrade the internal software system, and there is no additional cost." China Resources Vanguard ( Holdings) Co., Ltd. Marketing Department Brand Management Director Jiang Yan told reporters that at present, the 26 stores under China Resources Vanguard in Luohu District of Shenzhen City have all upgraded their cashier systems, and all cashiers have been trained. As of 24:00 on October 18, China Resources Vanguard has accepted a total of nearly 2.44 million yuan in digital RMB payments.

To support digital renminbi consumption, the relevant payment system must be transformed. Fan Yifei, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, previously wrote that in the process of digital renminbi circulation, considering the high technical foundation and system management requirements, commercial banks as designated operating agencies can cooperate with other commercial banks and related institutions to clarify responsibilities, rights and interests. Based on the relationship, jointly provide digital RMB circulation services to the public.

Industry insiders said that only merchants that have undergone system transformation and are capable can accept digital renminbi. However, the transformation cost is not borne by the merchant, but by the promotion and operation agency. This pilot event in Shenzhen is not only a test of the digital renminbi payment situation, but also a test of the operating structure.

Through this pilot activity, it can be seen that although the digital renminbi has an independent app, the central bank and the designated operating agency adopt a joint construction and sharing method to jointly Develop the wallet ecological platform while realizing their respective functional characteristics.

The digital renminbi has revealed its true colors. Which conjectures have been proved to be "misreading"?

As the digital renminbi wallet officially appeared in the public eye, the digital renminbi showing its true colors proved that some previous conjectures were "misreading".

——Digital currency is not equal to blockchain.

As previously introduced by Yi Gang, the governor of the People's Bank of China, the digital renminbi does not have a preset technical route in the research and development work, and can compete fairly in the market to select the best. Considering blockchain technology, new technologies evolved on the basis of existing electronic payments can also be adopted to fully mobilize the enthusiasm and creativity of the market.

The legal digital currency is not a digital encrypted asset, and it is not limited to a certain technology. It is not only the blockchain technology that is a digital currency. The reporter learned that the digital renminbi does adopt blockchain technology in some links, but based on certain technical characteristics of the blockchain, it is not suitable for application in the retail link.

——Digital RMB is not mandatory for merchants.

According to current regulations, merchants cannot refuse cash. Although the digital renminbi is positioned to replace some cash, supporting digital renminbi consumption requires the transformation of the relevant payment system, so there are conditional requirements for accepted merchants.

An institutional person involved in the operation of digital renminbi said that the circulation and operation of digital renminbi is a market-oriented behavior, and operations and service agencies need to improve the experience of customers and merchants , fully mobilize the enthusiasm and creativity of all parties, and ensure that digital renminbi is widely available.

——Digital currency is not intended to replace third-party mobile payments.

During the circulation of digital renminbi, all parties in the payment chain need to jointly promote it. The Central Bank’s Digital Currency Research Institute has reached a strategic cooperation with JD Digital Technology Group to jointly promote the application of digital renminbi. Ant Group also revealed that it is actively participating in digital renminbi research and development trials.

Mu Changchun, director of the Central Bank's Digital Currency Research Institute, once made it clear that the digital renminbi is "the digitization of the renminbi." As a pure public product, digital renminbi will become an important supplement to electronic payment, without seeking to replace any type of payment method.