The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, said that it had successfully launched the first phase of Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) in Shanghai on Thursday morning, according to a statement issued on PBOC's website.
CIPS, a long-waited international payments system designed to process cross-border yuan transactions, enhances transaction efficiency by enabling market participants outside China to clear yuan transactions with their counterparts in China during all the major time periods under a coding format in line with international practice.
On launch day, 19 banks including eight overseas banks were announced as the first batch of direct participants who are allowed to open accounts with CIPS and receive services directly. The 19 lenders are Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (01398.HK; 601398.SH), Agricultural Bank of China (01288.HK; 601288.SH), Bank of China (03988.HK; 601988.SH), China Construction Bank (00939.HK; 601939.SH), Bank of Communications (03328.HK; 601328.SH), China Merchants Bank (600036.SH; 03968.HK), Industrial Bank (601166.SH), Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (600000.SH), China Minsheng Bank (600016.SH; 01988.HK), Ping An Bank (000001.SZ), Huaxia Bank (600015.SH), HSBC, Citibank, Standard Chartered, Development Bank of Singapore, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, and Bank of East Asia.
In the meantime, 38 Chinese banks and 138 foreign peers from Asia, Europe, Oceania, and Africa regions have been approved as indirect participants who are entitled to CIPS services indirectly via one or more direct participants. According to plans, China will roll out the CIPS in two phases, and in the second phase, participants will have more flexibility to settle yuan funds.
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