Written by: Martin
On December 29, Lu Lei, Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China, publicly disclosed in an article that the "Action Plan on Further Strengthening the Digital RMB Management Service System and Related Financial Infrastructure Construction" will be officially implemented on January 1, 2026. This marks the transition of the digital RMB from the "digital cash" era to the 2.0 era of "digital deposits." The core highlight of this transformation is that the balance in real-name digital RMB wallets will begin to accrue interest, bringing tangible benefits to users.
According to the deployment of the "Action Plan," banking institutions will pay interest on the balances of real-name digital RMB wallets of categories I, II, and III, with the interest rate referencing the bank's listed demand deposit rate. Users do not need to take any additional action, and their payment experience will remain unaffected. Anonymous category IV wallets, which can be opened with just a mobile phone number, will retain their small-amount payment functions, but their balances will not accrue interest for the time being, balancing convenience with regulatory compliance requirements.
This upgrade also clarifies operational norms: the digital RMB held by bank-type operating institutions will be incorporated into the reserve requirement system for management. Wallet balances will be included in the base for calculating required reserve deposits and will receive the same level of security protection provided by deposit insurance. Non-bank payment institutions will be subject to a 100% reserve requirement, further strengthening the safeguards for fund security.
Lu Lei emphasized that the interest-bearing capability of an account is a key factor in incentivizing users and entities, which is crucial for monetary innovation. This adjustment not only endows the digital RMB with both payment convenience and value-added attributes—allowing idle funds to achieve both "payment + returns"—but will also promote the implementation of more financial service scenarios, injecting new momentum into the development of the digital economy.
