Former head of China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) research project, Yao Qian, has been expelled from the Chinese Communist Party and removed from his government position due to corruption allegations. He is accused of abusing his position, supporting specific technology service providers for personal gain, and accepting cryptocurrency, property, liquor, and dinners, as well as illegally borrowing money.
Qian’s case has been referred to local authorities for prosecution. Meanwhile, China’s digital yuan CBDC is attracting more real-world use cases, with almost $982 billion in transactions carried out by the end of June 2024. The digital yuan is being used in Hong Kong and for cross-border payments, including a recent cross-border crude oil transaction.