Upon launching the pilot program for China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital yuan, Chinese business travelers will purportedly be able to purchase airline tickets with the new digital currency.
China’s civil aviation news agency reported that a collaboration between China Merchants Bank, a commercial bank, and the Civil Aviation Administration resulted in the introduction of an e-CNY platform, which aims to facilitate transactions for travelers in the aviation network.
According to the agency, the newly introduced platform enables businesses and entrepreneurs to utilize the digital yuan for the expedient purchase of business airline tickets. Moreover, this platform allows passengers to use digital currency to access new services.
According to the report, China Travel Service, a Suzhou-based travel agency, has already used the platform to purchase client tickets.
At the ceremony commemorating the platform’s official launch on July 18, the Civil Aviation Administration and China Merchants Bank called for additional use cases for the digital yuan. They pledged to collaborate to explore the digital yuan’s application in diverse areas of the civil aviation industry.
According to the report, China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), has actively promoted using the digital yuan in China’s transportation network. Notably, in 2022, Beijing Daxing International Airport and Beijing Capital International Airport will collaborate on a digital yuan initiative related to cargo.
Similarly, following digital yuan integration efforts, railway networks, light rail connections, and metro systems in the pilot zone have been upgraded to facilitate power- and network-independent, seamless digital yuan payments.
In addition, all bus routes within the zone now accept digital yuan payments from passengers. In addition, several highway toll facilities within the pilot zone began taking the digital yuan earlier this year.
Since the beginning of the year, more than seven million new digital yuan purses have been created in Shenzhen, which is an astounding number. China’s determination to transform its economy by promoting the widespread adoption of the digital yuan is reflected in the expansion of the CBDC pilot program across multiple industries.
