UAE Joins Jisr CBDC Platform for Direct Cross-Border Payments with China

Q: What does UAE's Jisr participation mean for exchange houses and remittance providers?

As Jisr scales and additional central banks join, exchange houses and remittance firms connected to participating banks could eventually access faster and cheaper settlement for UAE-China flows. However, the platform is currently a wholesale infrastructure serving banks rather than consumers directly, so the near-term impact on retail remittance pricing will depend on how quickly commercial banks pass on cost savings - and on whether CBDC rails expand beyond the current bilateral corridor.

UAE Joins Jisr CBDC Platform for Direct Cross-Border Payments with China

{getToc} $title={Table of Contents}

UAE expands financial connectivity through participation in the Jisr CBDC project.

The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) confirmed its participation in Jisr, a live cross-border CBDC payment network linking the UAE and China.
The first transaction on Jisr was an AED 50 million (approximately USD 13.6 million) payment settled in central bank digital currencies.
Jisr is built on the distributed ledger technology underpinning Project mBridge, a multi-central bank initiative developed with the BIS Innovation Hub.
A parallel interlinking of UAE and Chinese instant payment systems now enables always-on digital transfers for retail, corporate, and student payments.
The UAE and China also launched the Jaywan-UnionPay prepaid card, integrating the domestic Jaywan card scheme with China's UnionPay network.
The moves could reshape pricing and settlement practices for UAE-based FX brokers and remittance providers as CBDC corridors expand from 2026.

Cross-Border CBDC Settlement Moves from Pilot to Live Infrastructure

The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has confirmed its operational participation in Jisr, a cross-border central bank digital currency (CBDC) payment network initially focused on UAE-China flows. The announcement, reported by Fintech News and Ledger Insights, marks a significant step forward for Project mBridge - a multi-CBDC infrastructure developed by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub alongside several central banks to test real-value cross-border transfers on a shared distributed ledger.

The practical significance of Jisr lies in its settlement model. Rather than routing transactions through correspondent banking chains, Jisr enables direct payment-versus-payment (PvP) settlement - meaning both legs of a foreign exchange transaction settle simultaneously in central bank money, cutting counterparty risk. This infrastructure, now operational between the CBUAE and the People's Bank of China (PBOC), has implications well beyond the two central banks involved.

What Jisr Is and How It Works

Jisr is a live cross-border payment rail built on the distributed ledger technology (DLT) developed for Project mBridge. The platform hosts multiple CBDCs on a single shared ledger, allowing commercial banks in participating jurisdictions to transact directly in their domestic central bank digital currencies - rather than relying on chains of intermediary correspondent banks and the nostro and vostro accounts (pre-funded balances held at overseas banks to facilitate payments) those chains require.

During mBridge's pilot phases, participating banks settled more than USD 22 million across 164 cross-border payment and FX PvP transactions, according to BIS documentation. Jisr effectively operationalises that model as a live bilateral corridor, with the CBUAE and PBOC - supported by selected Emirati and Chinese commercial banks - as the initial participants. The platform is designed to expand to additional central banks and currency pairs from 2026 onwards.

The Inaugural Transaction and What It Demonstrated

The Jisr platform was publicly launched in late 2025, when Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the CBUAE Board of Directors, received PBOC Governor Pan Gongsheng in Abu Dhabi and executed the first cross-border CBDC payment between the two countries. The inaugural transaction - reportedly AED 50 million (around USD 13.6 million), as noted by CoinGeek - was settled in CBDCs via the Jisr network, demonstrating that the platform supports material, real-value transfers rather than nominal test amounts.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between CBUAE Governor Khaled Mohamed Balama and Governor Pan Gongsheng to formalise cooperation on cross-border payments and shared financial infrastructure. This MoU signals that Jisr is intended as a long-term strategic platform, not a one-off demonstration. The CBUAE's March 2026 confirmation of participation underlines that the network has moved from launch into active operation.

A Broader Ecosystem: Instant Payments and Card Schemes

Jisr forms one part of a wider package of UAE-China financial connectivity measures unveiled alongside the inaugural transaction. The UAE's Instant Payment System was interconnected with China's Internet Banking Payment System, creating a complementary always-on retail and corporate payment channel for bilateral flows - covering scholarship remittances, payments from Chinese residents working in the UAE, and commercial transactions.

Additionally, the first multi-scheme prepaid card under the Jaywan-UnionPay brand was launched, issued in partnership with Lari Exchange. The card combines the UAE's domestic Jaywan scheme with China's UnionPay network, allowing local transactions to process domestically while providing broader international acceptance. Together, as Ledger Insights noted, these three initiatives - CBDC settlement, instant payment interlinking, and card-scheme cooperation - are designed as a complementary ecosystem rather than isolated tools.

Implications for UAE FX Brokers and Remittance Providers

For UAE-based foreign exchange brokers and remittance companies, the medium-term implications are meaningful. Multi-CBDC platforms like Jisr aim to reduce reliance on correspondent banks, intraday liquidity buffers, and the nostro/vostro account structures that currently add both cost and operational complexity to cross-border transfers. If commercial banks pass on settlement cost savings, pricing for UAE-China corridors could become more competitive over time.

The UAE is simultaneously introducing new digital-only remittance and payment licence categories that permit 100% foreign ownership for qualifying fintech firms, intensifying competitive pressure on traditional exchange houses. As additional central banks join the mBridge expansion scheduled for this year, FX and payments firms connected to participating banks may be able to offer faster, lower-cost corridors across a growing range of jurisdictions - reinforcing the UAE's positioning as a digitally advanced regional payments hub.

What Clients are Asking their Advisors

What is the Jisr platform and how is it different from a SWIFT payment?

Jisr is a cross-border central bank digital currency (CBDC) network that allows participating banks to settle payments directly in central bank money, without routing through the traditional correspondent banking chains that underpin SWIFT transfers. Unlike SWIFT, which relies on a sequence of intermediary banks and pre-funded overseas accounts, Jisr settles transactions on a shared distributed ledger in near real time, with the aim of reducing both cost and settlement delay.

Is Jisr the same as Project mBridge?

They are closely related but not identical. Project mBridge is the broader multi-CBDC infrastructure developed by the BIS Innovation Hub alongside several central banks, designed to test real-value cross-border transfers on a shared distributed ledger. Jisr operationalises that infrastructure specifically for the UAE-China corridor, giving the two countries a live payment rail built on mBridge technology.

Which UAE banks can currently access the Jisr CBDC network?

The CBUAE has not published a definitive public list of participating commercial banks. Based on available reports, selected Emirati and Chinese commercial banks are involved in supporting transactions on the platform, reflecting the public-private collaboration model used in mBridge's pilot phases. Businesses seeking CBDC-based settlement should approach their principal bank to enquire about connectivity.

What does UAE's Jisr participation mean for exchange houses and remittance providers?

As Jisr scales and more central banks join, exchange houses and remittance firms connected to participating banks could eventually access faster, cheaper settlement for UAE-China flows. However, the platform currently serves as wholesale infrastructure for banks rather than consumers directly, so the near-term impact on retail remittance pricing will depend on how quickly commercial banks pass on cost savings - and on whether CBDC rails expand beyond the current bilateral corridor.