China is preparing the commercial launch of mBridge, a cross-border payments platform built on central bank digital currencies, the Financial Times reported on 13 June, citing people familiar with the matter. No launch date was given, but preparations were described as being at an advanced stage. The platform is backed by the central banks of mainland China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates, with Saudi Arabia also listed as a participant at the time of the report.
According to the report, fees on the network would be about half those charged by traditional international payment systems such as Swift, and the platform is aimed in particular at smaller businesses that find existing cross-border channels costly and difficult to use. China's digital yuan, the e-CNY, plays a central role in the project.
FROM PILOT TO COMMERCIAL USE
mBridge is not new. The project reached minimum viable product stage in June 2024, when participants invited further central banks and private-sector firms to join. The Bank for International Settlements, which had supported its development, later stepped back from the project. The platform is considering incorporating in Hong Kong, according to the report.
Analysts quoted in coverage of the report described the platform as part of a broader shift toward competing payment networks. Tom Keatinge of the Royal United Services Institute called it "a digital currency belt and road", while Gene Ma of the Institute of International Finance said the global payments landscape was splitting into a "system of competing networks, with mBridge set to be one of them."
UPDATE
Update: in September 2026, the Saudi Central Bank said it was no longer a participating member of mBridge, having completed its proof-of-concept trial on 13 May 2025 (see our report).
Sources: Financial Times, 13 June 2026, as reported by PYMNTS; BIS, "Project mBridge reaches minimum viable product stage and invites further international participation", 5 June 2024.