China's digital yuan centre unveils central-bank system DCEPS and smart-contract framework
In short
On 21 October the Digital RMB Operations Management Center announced its digital yuan infrastructure service system, with two core results: the central-bank-side Digital RMB System (DCEPS) and the e-CNY SMART Contract ecosystem service framework. Xinhua reported that by the end of September 2026 cumulative digital yuan transactions reached 4.3 billion, worth about 31 trillion yuan.
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The Digital RMB Operations Management Center announced its digital yuan infrastructure service system on 21 October. It introduced two core results: the central-bank-side Digital RMB System (DCEPS) and the e-CNY SMART Contract ecosystem service framework. CLS, Yicai, 36Kr, Jiemian and IT Home carried the news that morning, and 36Kr and IT Home cited CCTV. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Xinhua reported from the 2026 Digital RMB Annual Conference, a parallel forum of the Financial Street Forum fintech conference. It said the infrastructure system is mainly made up of DCEPS and the Shubida (数币达) cross-border settlement comprehensive service platform (CBETS), built and run by the Operations Management Center and the International Operations Center respectively. [ 9 ]
An official of the People's Bank of China Digital Currency Institute said the digital yuan entered its 2.0 era on 1 January. The Operations Management Center then upgraded the architecture of the central-bank-side system, which the official described as the first comprehensive payment and settlement platform covering issuance management, retail, wholesale, blockchain and smart contracts. The official said it can sharply cut system access and liquidity management costs and handle QR-code, online and offline payments, smart enterprise order payments, trade finance and financial transaction settlement. [ 9 ]
Xinhua described digital yuan smart contracts as a core innovation, using digitised, automated and enforced contracts to address high trust costs, low coordination efficiency and difficult fund oversight. The new framework uses a public ecosystem service platform and unified standards to gather financial, industrial and technology players, with the aim of sharing service resources and letting financial institutions combine services around customer needs. [ 9 ]
Xinhua gave statistics for areas where digital yuan business is under way. By the end of September 2026, cumulative transactions stood at 4.3 billion, worth about 31 trillion yuan. September alone saw 99.67 million transactions worth about 1.87 trillion yuan, up 12% and 123% year on year respectively. [ 9 ]
IT Home reported that PBOC Governor Pan Gongsheng told the Financial Street Forum this week that the digital yuan's position had switched from cash to deposit money. He said operating institutions had grown from 10 to 30, covering all systemically important banks, and that the International Operations Center began operating in Shanghai in September last year. [ 6 ]
Huxiu's analysis, published on 22 October, said real-name wallet balances became commercial bank liabilities on 1 January, earning demand-deposit interest and covered by deposit insurance. It said anonymous wallets remain without interest. Separately, Jiemian's ETF note reported the CSI Fintech Theme Index up 1.40% as of 13:26 on 21 October. [ 8 , 10 ]
Why it matters
Xinhua says the new system is meant to cut access and liquidity management costs and widen use of the digital yuan across the economy. The documents give no independent assessment of how far this will happen.
Key facts
- The Digital RMB Operations Management Center announced the digital yuan infrastructure service system on 21 October, with two core results: DCEPS and the e-CNY SMART Contract ecosystem service framework. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 9 ]
- Xinhua said the infrastructure system is mainly made up of DCEPS and the Shubida (数币达) cross-border settlement comprehensive service platform (CBETS), built and run by the Operations Management Center and the International Operations Center respectively. [ 9 ]
- An official of the People's Bank of China Digital Currency Institute said the digital yuan entered its 2.0 era on 1 January this year. [ 9 ]
- By the end of September 2026, cumulative digital yuan transactions totalled 4.3 billion, worth about 31 trillion yuan. [ 9 , 10 ]
- In September alone there were 99.67 million transactions worth about 1.87 trillion yuan, up 12% and 123% year on year respectively. [ 9 ]
- PBOC Governor Pan Gongsheng said digital yuan operating institutions had grown from 10 to 30, covering all systemically important banks. [ 6 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- The Digital RMB Operations Management Center announced the digital yuan infrastructure service system on 21 October, introducing DCEPS and the e-CNY SMART Contract ecosystem service framework. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 9 ]
- Cumulative digital yuan transactions through the end of September 2026 were 4.3 billion, worth about 31 trillion yuan. [ 9 , 10 ]
- The number of digital yuan operating institutions has reached 30. [ 6 , 10 ]
Still unclear
- Whether the two named results make up the whole infrastructure system. The announcement lists DCEPS and the smart-contract framework as the two core results, while Xinhua separately says the system is mainly composed of DCEPS and the CBETS cross-border platform.
- How DCEPS should be described as a first. Xinhua quotes the Digital Currency Institute official calling it the first comprehensive payment and settlement platform of its kind, while Huxiu calls it the world's first central-bank platform that also covers cross-border services; the documents do not reconcile the two.
- Huxiu's account of the 2.0 changes, including interest on real-name wallets, deposit insurance up to 500,000 yuan, the expansion of operators in April and August, and mBridge figures. These details come from a single analysis piece (Huxiu) and are not repeated in other documents.
- Whether the 1.4% rise in the fintech and software indexes was linked to the announcement. Jiemian's ETF item places the announcement next to the index move, but gives no evidence of a connection.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- CLS reports the announcement. [ 1 ]
- 36Kr repeats the announcement, citing CCTV. [ 4 ]
- IT Home reports the announcement with Pan Gongsheng's remarks from the Financial Street Forum. [ 6 ]
- Jiemian reports the CSI Fintech Theme Index up 1.40% at this time. [ 8 ]
- Xinhua publishes its full report, with figures presented at the digital yuan annual conference. [ 9 ]