Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, better known as CZ, predicted that the digital Renminbi token (RMB) would be based on blockchain.

Speaking today at BlockShow Asia 2019, CZ shared his thoughts on the digital currency in development by the People’s Bank of China.

The details of this currency are not officially known. It will certainly not be as decentralized as Bitcoin (as it will be issued by the central bank), but CZ thinks it is going to be a blockchain-based version of RMB. He explained his reasoning:

“The Chinese government wants to push RMB’s influence globally. They want RMB to be competitive with the US dollar. In order to do that they really need to push this currency to have more freedom.”

He went on to discuss the merit of having more choices among blockchain currencies in general: “Having is better than not having. Having stablecoins is better than not having them. Having Libra is better than not having it.”

Addressing President Xi’s recent remarks about blockchain

Last month, China’s President Xi Jinping called for the country to accelerate its adoption of blockchain technologies. He didn’t specifically call out Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies, but CZ thinks the message brings positive effects to the industry as a whole.

“Everyone that I’m in touch with who was laughing at blockchain before is looking at blockchain now. I think that’s a huge sign for our industry. When you learn about blockchain, you almost have to learn about Bitcoin. If you learn about smart contracts, you will have to learn Ethereum.”

Bitcoin price spiked after Xi’s remarks last month. Some investors predict the Chinese digital currency will be issued within 2-3 months.