Bank of China completes largest recorded mBridge transactions, including a HK$10bn payment
Bank of China settled the two largest transactions recorded on mBridge, the multi-central-bank digital currency platform, in June and July 2026. A CNY 11.3bn payment through its Shenzhen branch was followed by a HK$10bn payment through its Fujian branch, the first very large settlement on the platform denominated in a currency other than renminbi.
What happened
Bank of China disclosed two record transactions on mBridge, the cross-border wholesale payment platform originally incubated by the Bank for International Settlements Innovation Hub with the central banks of China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. In June 2026 its Shenzhen branch settled CNY 11.3bn, about $1.67bn. In July 2026 its Fujian branch settled HK$10bn, about $1.28bn. The currency mix is the notable detail. Renminbi has accounted for more than 95% of mBridge payment volume to date, so a Hong Kong dollar leg of this size indicates the platform is being used for more than onshore-adjacent renminbi settlement. Cumulative volume figures published by different official sources do not agree. The People's Bank of China put cumulative mBridge volume at CNY 387bn, about $57bn, as of late 2025. The head of its Digital Currency Institute said in late June 2026 that volume was close to CNY 500bn. Bank of China said volume had exceeded CNY 600bn, about $88.7bn, by the end of June 2026. The BIS withdrew from the project in late 2024, leaving the participating central banks to operate it.
Why it matters
mBridge is the largest operating example of central bank money moving across borders on a shared ledger, and it competes directly with correspondent banking rather than with private stablecoins. Transactions of this size demonstrate that the platform can carry wholesale tickets, which is the threshold that determines whether it displaces nostro-vostro arrangements or remains a pilot. The divergence between published cumulative volumes matters for anyone trying to size the platform. Without a single audited series, assessments of mBridge's share of China-Hong Kong wholesale settlement rest on figures that differ by roughly CNY 200bn depending on the source and date.
What is not settled
Cumulative mBridge volume figures diverge across the People's Bank of China, its Digital Currency Institute and Bank of China; no audited series is published.
Institutions in this story
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Bank of China Limited
Bank
Among China's four largest state-owned commercial banks and the most internationalised of them, with the widest overseas branch network of any Chinese lender. It has become the most active commercial participant on…
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People's Bank of China
Central bank
China's central bank, established on 1 December 1948, responsible for monetary policy, issuance and management of the renminbi, the payment system and macro-financial stability. From 1 January 2026 it reclassified the…
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Hong Kong Monetary Authority
Central bank
Hong Kong's central banking institution, formed on 1 April 1993 by merging the Office of the Exchange Fund with the Office of the Commissioner of Banking, responsible for currency stability under the linked exchange…
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Bank for International Settlements
Standards body
Owned by its member central banks and serving as their forum for monetary and financial cooperation, it hosts the committees that write global prudential and payments standards. Chapter III of its 2026 Annual Economic…