China’s central bank chief says the development of a digital fiat currency will come ahead of stablecoins issued by private entities.

Pan Gongsheng, the governor of the People’s Bank of China ( PBoC ), reaffirmed this policy stance in a speech during the recent Annual Conference of Financial Street Forum 2025 in Beijing, which focused on the central bank’s macroprudential policies over the past few years and the way forward.

Pan says China will continue to prioritize the development of e-CNY as the key focus of its digital currency strategy, pursue its crackdown on domestic cryptocurrency operations and speculation, and maintain a cautious approach to stablecoins.

“After years of steady progress, the ecosystem of digital renminbi has taken an initial shape,” Pan says. “Going forward, the PBoC will further optimize the management system for e-CNY, study and optimize the positioning of e-CNY within the monetary hierarchy, and support more commercial banks to become e-CNY business operators.”

As of today, e-CNY remains the only legitimate digital currency in the country, and it is directly issued and regulated by the PBoC. Since its pilot launch in late 2019, e-CNY has been used across 17 provinces in China, with a cumulative transaction volume of 14.2 trillion yuan ( US$2 trillion ) as of the end of September 2025, according to PBoC data.

Potential risks

As of September, China has set up two operation e-CNY centres, in Beijing and Shanghai. The one in Shanghai will focus on the use of e-CNY in cross-border transactions, while the one in Beijing will handle the operation and maintenance of the e-CNY in general.

Meanwhile, the PBoC’s attitude towards stablecoins remains cautious, aligning with the view of many financial regulators worldwide. Stablecoins and their potential risks to the global financial system were a focus of discussion among financial ministers and central bankers attending the International Monetary Fund/World Bank Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., in October.

“The general view [during the meeting] is that stablecoins as a financial activity cannot effectively meet basic requirements such as customer identification and anti-money laundering at the moment,” says Pan. “This could amplify loopholes in global financial regulation, such as money laundering, illegal cross-border fund transfers, and terrorist financing.”

He warns that the atmosphere of market speculation for stablecoins is strong, which increases the vulnerability of the global financial system and impacts the monetary sovereignty of some less developed economies.  

“As a next step, the PBoC will continue to work with law enforcement agencies to crack down on the operation and speculation of cryptocurrencies in China, safeguarding economic and financial order,” Pan says. “At the same time, it will closely monitor and dynamically assess the development of stablecoins abroad.”