China-led mBridge tops $55B as BIS steps back, e-CNY expands
China-led cross-border central bank digital currency platform mBridge has processed more than $55 billion in payments as development of alternative rails to dollar-based systems accelerates.
Project mBridge, a multi-CBDC network, has completed over 4,000 cross-border transactions totaling roughly $55.5 billion, according to data compiled by the Washington-based Atlantic Council. The value marks a nearly 2,500-fold increase from the project’s initial pilot in 2022.
The platform is currently under trial by central banks in mainland China, Hong Kong, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. China’s digital yuan (e-CNY) accounts for an estimated 95% of total settlement volume on mBridge.
mBridge’s growth coincides with the expansion of China’s domestic CBDC infrastructure. Recent figures from the People’s Bank of China indicate the e-CNY has processed more than 3.4 billion transactions worth around 16.7 trillion yuan ($2.4 trillion), representing an increase of over 800% compared with 2023.
China to allow banks to pay interest on digital yuan
China’s central bank is introducing a framework that will permit commercial banks to pay interest on balances held in e-CNY wallets, aiming to extend the digital yuan beyond a cash-like payment instrument.
According to the People’s Bank of China, the framework will allow banks to incorporate the digital yuan into asset and liability management. PBOC Deputy Governor Lu Lei said the e-CNY will evolve into a “digital deposit currency,” broadening its function to include value storage and cross-border payments in addition to everyday transactions.
“Taken together, these developments point to a gradual expansion of the yuan’s internationalization through digital infrastructure,” Atlantic Council analyst Alisha Chhangani told Reuters. She added that rather than directly challenging the U.S. dollar’s dominance, China and partners are building parallel settlement rails to reduce reliance on existing dollar-centric systems.
BIS exits project mBridge amid sanctions evasion concerns
In 2024, the Bank for International Settlements stepped back from mBridge, which it had helped develop through its Innovation Hub since 2021, describing the change as a “graduation” rather than a withdrawal. BIS General Manager Agustín Carstens sought to distance the institution from speculation that mBridge could enable BRICS nations to circumvent international sanctions, stating that “mBridge is not the BRICS bridge” and that BIS systems cannot be used by sanctioned countries. Overlap between mBridge participants and BRICS members has continued to draw scrutiny over the project’s geopolitical implications.
The BIS has since shifted focus to Project Agorá, a separate initiative involving several major Western central banks that recently expanded testing.
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