Experts from Russia: Suggest using digital currency in Russia-China cross-border settlements

Russian State News Agency, Moscow, February 27 - Sofia Lyangannova, vice director of the Russia-China Digital Economy Research Center at Moscow State University, stated at a press conference held in Moscow that, under the sanctions, experts recommend using central bank digital currency in Russia-China cross-border settlements.

Since August 15, 2023, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation has started a pilot project for the digital ruble. Large banks and large trading companies as their clients must be able to conduct transactions with the digital ruble by September 1, 2026; other comprehensive banks and their large clients must be able to do so by September 1, 2027; other banks and trading companies must be able to do so by September 1, 2028. Chinese regulatory authorities are also actively promoting the digital yuan project.

Lyangannova said: "Now, both Moscow and Beijing are promoting the use of digital currencies, including for cross-border settlements. This was officially announced as early as September 2024, when Russia launched international business for the digital ruble within an experimental legal framework with extremely low fees. China began calculating interest on the digital yuan from January 2026, making it the first digital currency in the world with this function. However, there are some technical and regulatory issues as well as geopolitical challenges, so it is currently only a pilot project."

Lyangannova also pointed out that another way to solve the problem of bilateral settlements under sanctions could be to establish a specialized bank, referring to the Kunlun Bank model used in China-Iran settlements.

She concluded: "Taking this bank, which serves as the main operator for payments between China and Iran, as an example, theoretically, a separate financial institution project could be developed for Sino-Russian operations. However, implementing such a project would require substantial investment and certain diplomatic efforts from both sides."

Original: toutiao.com/article/1858293384033356/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author."