Asian Games venue pays electricity bills with digital yuan

The payment of digital renminbi is piloted in Fuyang district, Hangzhou. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]

The Fuyang Water Sports Center, one of the venues of the upcoming Asian Games Hangzhou 2022, joined the digital renminbi, or e-CNY, trials in China on April 3.

A staff member of the center's construction team had on this day used an e-CNY account to pay 2,000 yuan ($314.6) in electricity fees to the State Grid. This was the first electricity bill paid using e-CNY in Zhejiang province.

"The e-CNY payment has freed users from paying the extra service charges levied by payment apps such as WeChat and Alipay. It is also quicker for suppliers to collect fees," said Shao Shiyu, a staff member of the Hangzhou branch of the State Grid.

Shao noted that the e-CNY payment trial is aligned with the eco-friendly concept of the Asian Games.

The People's Bank of China, the nation's central bank, on April 2 released the list of new regions taking part in the e-CNY trials.

Among them are the six Chinese cities－Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Huzhou, Shaoxing and Jinhua – that will be involved in the 19th Asian Games this September.