A shop owner of the Yiwu International Trade Market shows an order paid in digital yuan. [Photo/zgyww.cn]

Zhejiang China Commodity City Group hosted an event to encourage merchants and buyers to use the digital yuan for payment on June 10.

Since Jinhua became part of a new batch of Chinese cities piloting digital yuan trails, Yiwu has taken the China Commodity City as a key pilot scenario to actively explore the innovative application of the digital yuan in the field of commerce and trade.

As of the end of May, more than 18,000 digital-yuan wallets had opened in the Yiwu International Trade Market, making the digital-yuan payment available at more than 9,400 shops.

The digital yuan, or e-CNY, is a sovereign digital currency being floated by the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank. China started to pilot test the digital yuan in 2020 to create a new type of yuan to meet the public demand for cash in the digital economy era.

The central bank will steadily promote the launch of the e-CNY and take a prudent attitude toward its research and development. The digital currency system should be safe, inclusive and friendly to users, based on evolving technologies, according to officials.