Recently, an increasing number of banks have successfully completed their first cross-border payment transactions through multilateral central bank digital currency bridges (mBridge) (hereinafter referred to as “currency bridges”), accelerating the implementation of digital RMB in the cross-border payment field.
Cross-border payment costs have been reduced by 60% – 80%. Recently, Guangfa Bank announced the successful completion of its first cross-border remittance transaction under the agency model via the currency bridge. This is a significant breakthrough for Guangfa Bank in keeping up with the national financial opening-up policy and expanding the cross-border application scenarios of digital RMB, injecting new vitality into the cross-border payment field. Agricultural Bank of China Shanwei Branch also disclosed that it processed a RMB 22 million cross-border payment transaction for an import and export company through the “currency bridge”.
Cross-border payment costs have been reduced by 60% – 80%. Recently, Guangfa Bank announced the successful completion of its first cross-border remittance transaction via the currency bridge.
Fenghua Rural Commercial Bank announced on its official WeChat account that, relying on the “Multilateral Central Bank Digital Currency Bridge” system, it successfully processed its first cross-border payment transaction for a trading company within its jurisdiction. The funds were transferred to a designated account in Hong Kong in real time, marking a new breakthrough for Fenghua Rural Commercial Bank in cross-border financial digital services and opening up a new, efficient, secure, and low-cost cross-border settlement channel for local foreign trade enterprises. Entering 2026, more and more commercial banks are accelerating their business expansion, using digital currency bridges to broaden their cross-border business. The Multilateral Central Bank Digital Currency Bridge project, hosted by the Innovation Centre of the Bank for International Settlements (Hong Kong) and jointly initiated by the Digital Currency Research Institute of the People’s Bank of China, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Central Bank of Thailand, and the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates, is a cross-border settlement platform dedicated to creating a highly efficient, low-cost, highly scalable, and regulatory-compliant cross-border payment solution centered on central bank digital currencies. Compared to the traditional SWIFT cross-border payment method, the currency bridge enables simultaneous payment and settlement, achieving “instantaneous arrival,” and saves significant intermediary fees due to its peer-to-peer architecture, providing enterprises with a more economical and transparent settlement experience.
Financial expert Qu Fang pointed out that in the currency bridge project, Chinese commercial banks mainly participate through direct access (large state-owned banks) or agent banking model (small and medium-sized banks), and the business scope has expanded from trade settlement to cross-border salary remittances, bond investment, etc. Regarding the reasons why commercial banks are accelerating their cross-border business layout under the money bridge channel, Zeng Gang, deputy director of the National Institution for Finance and Development, analyzed that, in addition to policy guidance, the core commercial driving forces are mainly reflected in four aspects: First, cost reduction and efficiency improvement. Money bridges rely on blockchain to achieve “peer-to-peer” clearing, eliminating intermediary bank links, reducing cross-border payment costs by 60%-80%, and shortening settlement time from 3-5 days to 6-9 seconds, significantly improving capital turnover efficiency; Second, differentiated competition. State-owned banks and joint-stock banks strengthen their cross-border financial advantages through money bridges, while small and medium-sized banks quickly make up for their shortcomings in cross-border services and expand their foreign-related clients through the agency model; Third, increased customer stickiness. Providing foreign trade enterprises with a “second-level arrival and full traceability” payment experience binds high-quality corporate clients; Fourth, ecosystem positioning. Early deployment of the central bank’s digital currency cross-border payment ecosystem, seizing the dividends of the internationalization of the digital RMB, paving the way for value-added businesses such as trade finance and supply chain finance, and aligning with the transformation direction of “comprehensive financial service providers”. Qu Fang also stated that commercial banks’ participation in multilateral central bank digital currency bridges can effectively reduce the clearing cycle and costs of cross-border payments, while improving customer service, reducing counterparty risk and exchange rate volatility risk, and enhancing customer loyalty. Furthermore, Wu Zewei, a special researcher at Jiangsu Commercial Bank, pointed out that by deploying digital currency infrastructure early on, banks can accumulate technical experience, shape future competitiveness, and seize innovation opportunities. From the perspective of current business development, Zeng Gang pointed out that the currency bridge entered the MVP stage in June 2024, and the transaction volume grew rapidly in 2025, covering scenarios such as trade settlement and cross-border fund pools, with a cumulative transaction volume exceeding 380 billion yuan, of which digital RMB accounted for more than 95%. “Currently, commercial banks’ cross-border digital RMB business through currency bridges has gradually shifted from pilot programs to regular operations. State-owned banks and some joint-stock banks have taken the lead in completing multiple transactions, and city and rural commercial banks have recently accelerated their access,” said Wu Zewei. Regarding participation strategies, Zeng Gang believes that state-owned banks, as core nodes, invest resources in technology research and development and scenario innovation, and have successfully completed numerous large-scale capital account transactions; joint-stock banks focus on customer needs, expanding agency models and specialized scenarios; and small and medium-sized banks rely on agent banks to “go global” and quickly enter the cross-border payment market. Wu Zewei also pointed out that state-owned banks, relying on their global networks and resources, lead system integration and standard setting; joint-stock banks focus on niche markets and product innovation; and city and rural commercial banks mostly “go global” through agent banking models, relying on cooperation with large banks. In terms of resource investment, large banks invest heavily in technology research and development and compliance teams, while small and medium-sized banks mainly focus on lightweight cooperation. In Zeng Gang’s view, the agency model breaks the traditional “Matthew effect” in cross-border finance, allowing small and medium-sized banks to provide services without building their own cross-border networks, forcing large banks to improve service efficiency and pricing capabilities, promoting the transformation of cross-border financial services towards “inclusiveness and efficiency,” and forming a multi-level competitive landscape. Furthermore, Zeng Gang emphasized that in the current environment, banks need support in four aspects when connecting cross-border digital currency payments with trade finance, asset digitization, and other scenarios. First, in terms of policy, improve the regulatory framework for cross-border digital currencies, clarify rules on foreign exchange and anti-money laundering, introduce tax incentives and fiscal subsidies, and reduce business compliance costs. Second, in terms of technology, unify digital currency technical standards, open up conversion channels between the digital RMB and the account system, and establish interoperability mechanisms across institutions and currencies. Third, in terms of ecosystem, promote the connection between the currency bridge and the CIPS and foreign exchange trading center systems to provide foreign exchange liquidity support; encourage banks and enterprises to jointly build trade finance, cross-border e-commerce, and other scenarios to increase the frequency of digital currency applications. Fourth, in terms of cooperation, deepen multilateral central bank cooperation, expand the scope of participation in the currency bridge, build a cross-border digital currency ecosystem, and enhance the international acceptance of the digital RMB. As cross-border payments with the digital RMB move from pilot programs to normalization, the currency bridge is becoming a new track for commercial banks to compete for, not only reshaping the cross-border payment experience but also opening up a more flexible and layered infrastructure space for the internationalization of the RMB.
