China just made its most concrete move yet to take the digital yuan global. On June 16, the People’s Bank of China signed direct participant agreements with 26 financial institutions, formally onboarding them into a new cross-border payment network built entirely around the e-CNY.
The platform is called Cross-border e-CNY Transfer Services, or CBETS. It runs 24/7 and is designed to connect foreign central banks and financial institutions directly to China’s digital currency infrastructure. Standard Chartered Bank (China) is among the most prominent names in the first cohort.
What CBETS actually does
The platform creates direct digital payment links between the PBOC and participating foreign institutions. The system operates around the clock, which matters when you’re trying to settle payments across Asia, the Middle East, and South America simultaneously.
The 26 institutions signing on represent what the PBOC is calling its first tier of direct participants. These include branches of Chinese-funded banks operating abroad, along with foreign banks like Standard Chartered. The geographic spread is notable: participating institutions come from Thailand, Singapore, Laos, Qatar, and Brazil, among other countries.
