Several universities in China’s Jiangsu province are preparing to pay faculty and staff salaries in the digital yuan starting in November, extending the use of the country’s central bank digital currency in public institutions.
Yangzhou University and Nantong University said they are moving ahead after receiving notices from Jiangsu provincial fiscal authorities. A third school, Jiangsu Normal University, said it will introduce the system gradually but has not given a launch date.
Universities set wallet deadlines for staff
Yangzhou University told full-time faculty, staff and contract workers to open or upgrade their digital yuan wallets ahead of the change. The university asked employees to complete wallet setup by October 23.
In its notice, Yangzhou said salary payments made in digital yuan could be transferred to employees’ existing payroll accounts, indicating the new system will work alongside current banking arrangements rather than replacing them outright.
Nantong to cover salary and performance pay
Nantong University also said it will start paying employees in the digital yuan from November. The school required staff to open digital yuan wallets by October 30.
According to the notice, the wallets will be used for both regular salary payments and performance-based pay, suggesting a broader use of the digital currency within employee compensation.
Jiangsu Normal plans a phased rollout
Jiangsu Normal University said it will gradually implement salary payments in the digital yuan. The university did not disclose when the transition will begin.
That leaves Yangzhou University and Nantong University as the institutions with confirmed November plans in the information currently available.
Part of a wider public-sector push
The move fits into China’s broader effort to expand practical use of the digital yuan in payroll and other public-sector payments. The digital yuan is the country’s central bank digital currency.
A related example emerged earlier in Jiangsu. In Changzhou, authorities expanded a citywide system in September 2024 to pay part of the salaries of government employees, state-owned enterprise workers and staff at public institutions in the digital yuan.
For now, the next confirmed step is the November start at the two universities that have issued detailed notices, while Jiangsu Normal’s timetable remains unspecified.
Source: en.bloomingbit.io