HSBC: RMB Global Payment Share Could Double as Corporates Shift from Pilot Use to Systematic Adoption
nashnova research
HSBC's global head of RMB internationalisation Vina Cheung says a doubling of the renminbi's 6%–7% global payment share is not impossible — the core driver is multinationals upgrading the currency from occasional settlement tool to everyday treasury currency, signalling a shift from policy-led to corporate-led internationalisation.
Where does the renminbi stand in global payments right now?
China's central-bank governor disclosed last month that, on a composite basis, the renminbi's global payment share has risen to 6%–7%, ranking third worldwide.
Vina Cheung, HSBC's global head of RMB internationalisation, says a doubling of that share is not impossible.
This means → the renminbi is no longer just a back-up option for China trade settlement; it is approaching the threshold of a mainstream payment currency.
How exactly has corporate behaviour changed?
Cheung summed up the shift in one contrast: five years ago clients asked "Can I pay in RMB?" — just testing whether the plumbing worked. Now they ask "Can I collect, disburse, hedge, pool and invest in RMB across the entire supply chain?"
In plain terms = what was once a one-off experiment has become a systematic treasury arrangement — companies are treating the renminbi as an operating currency, not a curiosity.
This reflects a deeper corporate drive to reduce currency mismatch and diversify away from dollar dependence — one of the foundational forces behind RMB internationalisation.
What real-world cases back this up?
A global gold trader moved its RMB payment account from London to Hong Kong to achieve same-day settlement with Chinese counterparties while cutting intermediary costs.
A major mining company matched RMB receivables against RMB-denominated procurement and investment spending, using natural hedging — covering same-currency outflows with same-currency inflows to avoid conversion costs.
Another firm agreed to settle 30% of its annual spot sales in China in renminbi, an estimated $8–10 billion per year.
How strong is the cross-border data?
The PBOC's latest quarterly report shows China's cross-border goods-trade RMB settlement rose 20% year-on-year in the first three quarters of 2026.
CIPS — China's cross-border RMB payment system — processed a cumulative RMB 182.8 trillion (≈$27.4 trillion) in the first ten months of this year, already surpassing the 2025 full-year total of RMB 180.2 trillion.
This means → the cross-border RMB infrastructure has moved from "adequate" to "high-frequency operation," and the sheer volume is drawing more participants in.
Where is the geographic hotspot, and what exchange-rate conditions help?
Cheung noted that Southeast Asia's rising RMB settlement volumes are closely tied to the region's status as a primary destination for Chinese outbound direct investment in recent years.
She added that the steady growth in cross-border RMB transactions over the past two to three years has been encouraging, with lower exchange-rate volatility also helping.
In her words: "Consistency matters — on the exchange-rate front, what the market welcomes is steady appreciation at a reasonable pace."
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