Zou LAN, director of the Monetary Policy Department of the people's Bank of China, said on the 13th that the digital RMB pilot has expanded from the original "10+1" pilot area to 23 regions in 15 provinces and cities. Shenzhen, Suzhou, xiong'an new area and Chengdu have abolished the white list restrictions, and Industrial Bank of China has been recruited as a new designated operating institution. "The pilot of the Beijing Winter Olympics was successfully completed, and the digital RMB, as a science and technology business card, made a wonderful debut at the Beijing Winter Olympics and Winter Paralympics." Zou Lan said at the press conference held by the State Council Information Office on the same day that in the first half of this year, with the strong support of the pilot areas, the people's Bank of China, together with all participating institutions, solidly and steadily promoted the pilot test of digital RMB, steadily expanded the scope of the pilot test, continued to innovate the characteristic application scene, and extended the tentacles of digital RMB services. Focusing on the overall situation of stabilizing the economic market, digital RMB plays an active role in ensuring people's livelihood, promoting consumption, expanding domestic demand and stabilizing growth through its distinctive functions such as smart contracts. According to reports, as of May 31, the pilot areas in 15 provinces and cities have accumulated about 264 million transactions through digital RMB, with an amount of about 83 billion yuan, and the number of merchant stores supporting digital RMB payment has reached 4.567 million. Zou Lan said that in the next step, the people's Bank of China will steadily and orderly expand the pilot scope, strengthen scene construction and application innovation, carry out research on major issues, and continue to deepen international exchanges and cooperation. (Xinhua News Agency)