(25 March 2026 – China) Beijing is progressing its genuine alternative to Western payment networks in the wake of relaxed rules governing its global payment system.
China is moving closer to building the Cross Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) into a global platform compatible with multicurrency settlements and other foreign payment channels after first launching in 2015.
Beijing recently undertook the first major update since 2018 to rules governing CIPS which previously focused on yuan-denominated payments only.
Standard Chartered was the first foreign bank in the offshore market permitted to participate in the global Chinese CIPS clearing platform for Renminbi.
US President Trump was scheduled to visit China for trade talks however his trip has been delayed as a result of the Iran War with Beijing increasingly frustrated by Washington’s mixing of trade demands with other imperatives.
“We can see this as more of a pause than a breakthrough overall. This resembles unfinished business between both sides. I would absolutely expect another round before Trump’s delayed visit. Neither side wants tension to overshadow this crucial event” said Centre for Explanatory Research and Scientific Prediction Europe-Asia Programme Director James Downes..