Chinese workers are showing a lack of enthusiasm towards the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC). A report on May 13 revealed that some workers who received their salaries in digital yuan (e-CNY) converted the asset into fiat currency immediately after they were paid, indicating a clear preference for physical cash over the digital alternative.
Despite the Chinese government’s efforts to promote the adoption of the digital yuan, a report from the local media outlet South China Morning Post indicates that many workers are hesitant to use it in their daily transactions.
UPDATE: CHINESE WORKERS WHO ARE PAID IN CBDC, E-CNY, ARE REPORTEDLY CASHING OUT FOR PHYSICAL MONEY
— BSCN Headlines (@BSCNheadlines) May 13, 2024
The report surveyed responses from local workers and detailed the reason behind China’s slow uptake of the digital yuan.
Ye Dongyan, a researcher at the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business in Beijing, highlighted the need to balance privacy and security, which has slowed the progress of promoting the digital yuan.
“Paper currency is used anonymously, but the digital yuan is different,” he said. “The boundaries between information tracking and information security protection need more deliberation.”
Workers in the Chinese civil service also expressed their thoughts on the use of the CBDC.
Andrew Wang, a civil servant, said he wasn’t too worried by the idea of digital cash as it was only a small part of his salary being paid in digital yuan. His wife, who receives her full salary in digital yuan, however, withdraws the full amount as regular cash the moment she’s paid due to a lack of utility with the digital currency.
He explained that she couldn’t deposit the funds or buy financial products with the e-CNY
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