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CIPS: China's cross-border yuan payment system (2015)
Oct 2015· Institution or agency
Fact, law or dataA rule, statute, definition or measured number.
CIPS is China's system for clearing and settling cross-border payments in yuan, launched by the central bank in October 2015.
See it on the Money & Finance map →How it works
The People's Bank of China set it up, and CIPS Co. runs it from Shanghai. Before it, offshore yuan payments went through designated clearing banks in places like Hong Kong. Member banks hold accounts in CIPS and settle yuan payments there. In 2025 it handled about 180 trillion yuan (about $26 trillion), with 193 direct and 1,573 indirect participants in 124 countries. It has its own messaging format, but many payment instructions still travel over SWIFT.
Why it matters
It gives China and its partners a yuan payment route less exposed to US oversight, though the yuan is still only about 3–5% of global payments.
Facts, rules and data
CIPS and PBOC annual statistics, SWIFT's monthly RMB Tracker, and studies by the Atlantic Council and others.
Debates and risks
Whether CIPS could keep working if sanctions hit China's largest banks, and how much of its traffic still depends on SWIFT.
Connections (4)
▸CIPS: China's cross-border yuan payment system (2015) is China's yuan counterpart to CHIPS: the big banks' private dollar wire systemFact, law or data
The connection
Both clear large payments between banks in one currency. CHIPS, owned by big banks through The Clearing House, settles about $1.8 trillion of dollar payments a day. CIPS, backed by China's central bank, settled about 180 trillion yuan, roughly $26 trillion, in all of 2025: about three weeks of CHIPS traffic.
When and why
CHIPS in New York since 1970; CIPS in Shanghai since October 2015.
How we know
The Clearing House and CIPS each publish volume statistics, so their sizes can be compared directly.
Debates and risks
Whether CIPS volumes reflect genuinely new demand or China steering existing yuan trade through its own pipes.
▸CIPS: China's cross-border yuan payment system (2015) aims to reduce China's reliance on SWIFT: the bank messaging networkFact, law or data
The connection
SWIFT carries the payment messages most banks use; it is based in Belgium and follows EU sanctions decisions. CIPS has its own message format, so yuan payments could in principle avoid SWIFT. In practice many CIPS members still send instructions over SWIFT, so reliance is reduced, not ended.
When and why
Plans sped up after the 2014 sanctions on Russia; CIPS launched in 2015 and saw more use after Russian banks lost SWIFT access in 2022.
How we know
CIPS rules describe its messaging standard; SWIFT and Chinese officials acknowledge that many CIPS payments use SWIFT messages.
Debates and risks
How quickly CIPS could switch fully to its own messaging if China's big banks were ever cut off from SWIFT.
▸CIPS: China's cross-border yuan payment system (2015) is core plumbing for De-dollarization and BRICS alternativesMainstream view
The connection
Moving away from the dollar takes plumbing as well as politics. CIPS lets banks abroad pay and receive yuan directly with China, for trade with Russia, Iran and others, without touching US correspondent banks. It is the backbone of yuan settlement plans, from Russian oil deals to BRICS payment links.
When and why
Shanghai, since 2015, with participants in 124 countries by the end of 2025.
How solid is the link?
CIPS volumes, up 43% in 2024, and SWIFT's RMB Tracker show growing yuan use, though still far below dollar levels.
Debates and risks
Whether growth reflects lasting demand or mainly sanctioned trade with nowhere else to go; 2025 volume grew only about 3%.
▸Oil paid in yuan: Russia, Iran and the Saudi talks settle partly through CIPS: China's cross-border yuan payment system (2015)Fact, law or data
The connection
Yuan payments for oil can clear through CIPS, letting Russian and other banks pay Chinese counterparts without US correspondent banks. But big Chinese banks fear US penalties, so much of the trade moves through smaller regional banks, netting schemes or other channels.
When and why
From 2022, mainly in Russia–China trade; Iran-linked trade uses more hidden routes.
How we know
CIPS volume growth and press reports; transaction-level data are not public.
Debates and risks
How much oil money flows through CIPS rather than informal channels.