On December 29, 2025, Lu Lei, Vice Governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), announced in the Financial Times that the new-generation digital renminbi’s (RMB) measurement framework, management system, operational mechanisms, and ecosystem will be officially implemented on January 1, 2026. This marks the transition of the digital RMB from its initial digital cash form to an account-based digital deposit currency (Digital Deposit Money).

According to the Action Plan, the digital RMB will be technically supported and regulated by the central bank while carrying commercial bank liability attributes. It will circulate within the financial system and serve as a unit of account, store of value, and cross-border payment tool. The measurement framework brings bank-based digital RMB into the reserve requirement system, while non-bank payment institutions are required to maintain 100% digital RMB reserves. Under the “dual-layer” architecture, customer holdings in commercial bank wallets are classified as account-based bank liabilities, marking the shift from the cash-oriented 1.0 version to the deposit-oriented 2.0 version of digital RMB.

The governance structure separates supervision from operations to balance oversight and innovation: the Digital RMB Management Committee supervises functional aspects, the Self-Regulatory Office within the Digital Currency Institute sets operational standards, and the Operational Management Center oversees domestic and cross-border systems, forming a “two-wing structure” for system safety and operational continuity.

On the technological side, the digital RMB system leverages AI, big data, blockchain, and post-quantum cryptography to enable real-time monitoring, intelligent risk identification, and data-driven governance, while ensuring that infrastructure remains autonomous, secure, and reliable.

In terms of infrastructure and practical applications, on September 25, the Digital RMB International Operations Center officially began operations in Shanghai, launching three platforms: the cross-border digital payment platform, blockchain service platform, and digital asset platform. Subsequently, on December 24, the PBOC, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Commerce, China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, China Securities Regulatory Commission, and State Administration of Foreign Exchange, issued the “Opinions on Financial Support for Accelerating the Construction of the Western Land-Sea New Corridor”, encouraging provinces and municipalities along the corridor to participate in multilateral central bank digital currency bridge projects, advance cross-border payment pilots with Singapore and other countries, and support the construction of cross-border e-commerce digital service platforms connecting with international digital trade platforms.