To attract new users, China's wallet app for its digital yuan central bank digital currency (CBDC) introduced the ability for users to send money in an electronic version of traditional "red packets."
As reported by the South China Morning Post on December 26th, the new feature was released over the weekend, roughly one month before the Chinese New Year on January 22nd.
The "red packets," known as hongbao in China, are traditionally used to give money as a symbol of good luck during the Chinese New Year and other celebrations. Popular local services, such as WeChat Pay and Alipay, now offer virtual red envelopes in response to the rise of digital payments.
Reportedly, the e-CNY app allows a red packet to be sent to a single recipient, or a "lucky draw" can be set up for a group of recipients to receive a random amount from a pool of funds. WeChat Pay and Alipay have a similar feature.
Users can select a packet cover that features well wishes for the new year, birthdays, and a "prosperous China."
The Chinese Workers' Daily reported on December 18 that the e-CNY trails will expand to Jinan, Nanning, Fangchenggang, and Kunming. Prior to September, the trials had expanded to four provinces, including the most populous, Guangdong.
Despite the government's rapid expansion of the trials, 261 million users have created e-CNY wallets as of January 2022, according to the most recent report.
WeChat Pay and Alipay may be utilized by the Chinese government to promote the adoption of the digital yuan.
According to financial reports, WeChat had 1.3 million monthly active users in the September quarter, while Alipay had over 1 billion annual active users in its fiscal year ending on August 31, 2020.
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