A multinational commodity company from ASEAN recently received a special trade financing from Standard Chartered Bank - this loan is denominated in RMB and closely aligned with the company's trade chain. The company's products are sold to China, and naturally chose RMB for financing. ”Wu Yasi, Head of the China Open and RMB Internationalization Team and Managing Director of Standard Chartered Group, told Shanghai Securities News reporters that more and more overseas companies have close trade relations with the Chinese market, and therefore actively choose RMB financing. This is the latest epitome of RMB internationalization. In 2025, the Renminbi will stand at the intersection of trade and finance, writing a new international narrative: on the one hand, leveraging the "East Wind" of trade, the Renminbi will rapidly develop in international trade financing and settlement; On the other hand, under the policy promotion of top-level design, capital account opening is expected to become a key breakthrough in the internationalization of the renminbi, injecting new impetus into the diversification of the global financial landscape. Borrowing the "East Wind" of Trade: Taking a Unique Path to Internationalization For overseas enterprises that use RMB for financing, RMB not only brings convenience, but also tangible cost advantages. Wu Yasi said that in the current interest rate environment, RMB financing has shown significant cost attractiveness - compared to USD financing, if currency swaps are not involved, corporate financing costs may be reduced by 100 to 200 basis points directly. In the capital circulation of such enterprises, the RMB also plays a dual role. It can serve as a 'source of fresh water' for foreign direct investment, and can also convert local sales revenue into RMB, directly matching the procurement needs in the Chinese market, "said Wu Yasi. Trade is becoming a strong "east wind" driving the international use of the renminbi. In the markets we deeply cultivate, such as ASEAN and Africa, offshore RMB is increasingly widely used, "said Wu Yasi. In these markets, China is the main trading partner both as a supplier and a buyer. In the first half of 2025, the total amount of RMB cross-border receipts and payments reached 35 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14%. Among them, the total amount of cross-border RMB receipts and payments for goods trade was 6.4 trillion yuan, accounting for 28% of the total amount of domestic and foreign currency cross-border receipts and payments during the same period, and both the amount and proportion of receipts and payments were at the highest level in history. At present, the RMB is the largest settlement currency for China's external payments, the second largest trade financing currency, and the third largest payment currency in the world. Goldman Sachs China Chief Economist Shanhui told the Shanghai Stock Exchange reporter that the renminbi is embarking on a unique path of internationalization - using trade as a lever to achieve a synchronous increase in trade share and renminbi settlement proportion, and relying on the current account surplus to achieve capital circulation through outward direct investment. With the continuous expansion of the international use of the Renminbi, the Renminbi Cross border Payment System (CIPS) has also been establishing itself overseas, paving the way for it. In June 2025, CIPS officially signed cooperation agreements with six foreign institutions, including Standard Bank, African Export Import Bank, Abu Dhabi First Bank, and Dahua Bank. This is the first time CIPS has successfully integrated into the core banks of the offshore RMB market in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Singapore, marking a historic leap in its global service network coverage. ”Jiang Dongying, a senior researcher at the Foreign Exchange Commodity Department of Xingye Research, told the Shanghai Stock Exchange reporter that this is of great significance for building an independent and controllable cross-border payment system and promoting the internationalization of the renminbi. Jiang Dongying believes that with the boost of regional trade and investment growth, the integration of CIPS into local core banks will help form a network effect for the cross-border use of RMB, expand the direct use of RMB in commodity trade such as energy, minerals, and agricultural products, and enhance the pricing function of RMB. Full bloom: The international influence of the RMB is still in the stage of improvement. With the profound evolution of the international monetary system, the internationalization of the RMB has already gone beyond trade, but has "fully bloomed" in investment, financing, valuation and other fields. In recent years, a series of measures such as the inclusion of the Chinese yuan in the SDR currency basket, the inclusion of China's stock and bond markets in multiple international mainstream indices, and the accelerated opening up of important commodity varieties have driven the continuous rise of China's asset price influence, and the international status of the Chinese yuan has risen accordingly. Currently, the Chinese yuan ranks third in the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights currency basket. As of the end of the third quarter of 2025, the scale of RMB assets held overseas reached 10.42 trillion yuan, a new high in nearly 43 months. The increasingly close monetary cooperation between central banks can also reflect the steady expansion of the RMB's "circle of friends". According to Xingye Research, since the People's Bank of China and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority signed the first currency swap agreement in January 2009, the scale and network of RMB currency swaps have continued to expand. As of November 2025, the scale of bilateral currency swap agreements signed between China's central bank and central banks or monetary authorities of global economies has reached 4.5 trillion yuan, the highest since December 2008. The frequency and scale of currency swap agreements are expected to significantly increase. ”Lian Ping, the director of Guangkai Chief Industry Research Institute, told Shanghai Securities News reporters that the growth in the scale of domestic and foreign currency exchanges between China and other countries has made it more convenient for countries to obtain RMB. This not only helps to enhance the international currency status of the renminbi, but also provides more diversified currency options for relevant countries and regions. The industry believes that the international status and global influence of the RMB are in a period of improvement, and there is broad development space in the future. According to Shanhui analysis, based on GDP or trade volume indicators, the Chinese economy accounts for an average of 15% to 20% of the global market share, while the role played by the renminbi in the global financial system averages 2% to 3%. There is still a significant gap between the proportion of economy and currency, which means that the internationalization of the RMB has great development space. The profound adjustment of the global economic landscape also brings important opportunities for the internationalization of the renminbi. Lian Ping stated that the demand for diversified foreign exchange reserves from central banks around the world continues to rise, especially in the context of the prominent credit risk of the US dollar, and the Chinese yuan has become an important alternative. Moving towards a new path: The comprehensive acceleration of RMB internationalization proposed in the "15th Five Year Plan" aims to promote RMB internationalization, enhance the level of capital account openness, and build an independent and controllable RMB cross-border payment system. In the next five years, the internationalization of the RMB will show a comprehensive acceleration trend. ”Lian Ping believes that this is mainly due to the combined effects of multiple factors such as the restructuring of the international trade pattern, deepening financial openness, and increasing strategic demand. The opening of capital accounts is regarded as a key lever for the advancement of RMB internationalization. Jiang Dongying stated that as of now, direct investment has been basically opened up, and in the future, securities investment, derivatives, and other instruments will be opened up or promoted for RMB investment, financing, and valuation functions. The coordinated promotion of RMB internationalization and capital account opening requires bold ideas, careful verification, and simultaneous research and deployment with deep-seated reforms. ”According to Guan Tao, Global Chief Economist of Bank of China Securities. Guan Tao stated that it is expected that during the 15th Five Year Plan period, China's capital market will seize a series of important opportunities such as comprehensive reform, economic transformation, institutional improvement, and value revaluation to achieve great development. This will provide strong support for the overall promotion of RMB internationalization and capital account opening. Conversely, expanding high-level financial openness, especially in the primary markets of Chinese stocks and bonds, not only enhances the resilience of the domestic financial system and improves the function of the RMB as a financing currency, but also helps domestic financial services and standards to "go global". It can be foreseen that under the dual drive of trade and financial openness, the internationalization of the RMB will accelerate towards deeper levels and wider fields. (New Society)