Blockchain company R3 has launched an office in Hong Kong to develop technologies related to China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), the firm said.
The collaboration with Cyberport, Hong Kong’s tech hub, will enable R3 to offer Corda, its distributed ledger platform, and Conclave, its confidential computing platforms, to Hong Kong’s fintech start-ups.
New York-based R3 said it would support the creation of software applications based on digital trust technologies.
Cyberport and R3 will launch a series of blockchain training programmes for technical developers later this year to help Cyberport-based companies acquire CBDC-related technology.
Peter Yan, chief executive of Cyberport, said the move reflect’s Beijing’s desire to develop a digital yuan, or e-CNY.
“By the end of last year, the usage of e-CNY had reached 87.5 billion yuan of transactions with 261 million individual wallets set up,” he said.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is studying CBDC payment and settlement in Hong Kong to help promote mutual access in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, and support the consolidation of Hong Kong’s status as a global offshore yuan business hub.
“CBDC will drive demand for blockchain applications and create huge opportunity,” Yan added
Amit Ghosh, chief Information and services officer at R3, said CBDC would reshape the financial industry.
“Both central banks and financial institutions will need to build new systems, and even review the financial system’s operating processes.”
