• China has launched a smart contract functionality for its digital yuan on the 17th of January 2023.
• The smart contract is designed to halt the collection of funds from payees and is offering a daily price of 8,888 RMB for users who use the digital yuan to make purchases on the Meituan application.
• Users can win some of the money up for grabs if the words generated by the smart contract and the words on their items and name match.

China has taken another major step towards the increased adoption of its central backed digital currency (CBDC) with the launch of interactive smart contracts for the digital yuan. On the 17th of January 2023, the country launched the new functionality on one of its most popular shopping applications, Meituan.

The launch of the smart contract is designed to halt the collection of funds from payees, who might be making away with prepaid funds. In order to attract users, the smart contract is offering users a daily price of 8,888 RMB (1,312) if they make a purchase using the digital yuan. However, users can win a portion of the 8,888 RMB if the words generated by the smart contract and the words on their items and name match.

The launch of the smart contract marks the latest move by the Chinese government to increase the adoption of its digital currency. In September 2022, the People’s Bank of China’s Digital Currency Institute teased the integration of a smart-contract functionality for the digital yuan. Shortly after, the announcement was followed up with the launch of the new functionality.

The introduction of the smart contract for the digital yuan has raised questions about the future of Ethereum, the market leader in smart contracts. Despite the competition from the digital yuan, Ethereum smart contracts are still healthy and likely to outpace the completion.

The launch of the smart contract for the digital yuan is the latest step by the Chinese government in its push for increased adoption of the digital currency. With the new functionality, users have the ability to earn money by making purchases using the digital yuan, as well as the potential to win a portion of the 8,888 RMB offered daily. While it is yet to be seen whether the digital yuan will be able to compete with the market leader, Ethereum, it is clear that the competition is heating up in the smart contracts space.