Senators to bill to bar app stores from accepting Chinese currency

Republican senators plan to unveil a bill that would bar US app stores, including Apple and Google, from hosting apps that allow payments with China's digital currency, according to a copy of proposed legislation seen by Reuters.

The payment system could allow Beijing to spy on Americans, according to the concern.

The bill is backed by Senators Tom Cotton, Marco Rubio and Mike Braun and states that companies that own or control app stores must not support or support any app in their app store s in the United States that supports or enables transactions in e-CNY. Cotton's office said digital yuan could provide the Chinese government with real-time visibility into all transactions on the network, posing privacy and security concerns for American persons who join the network. In January 2021, the Center for a New American Security said in Washington D.C. that transactions will contain precise data about users and their financial activity and that there will be concerns about China's digital currency and electronic payments system. Payment applications that accept the digital currency are WeChat, owned by China's Tencent and Alipay, owned by Jack Ma's Ant Group.

The apps are available in the Apple and Google App stores.

Apple, Alphabet's Google, Ant Group, Tencent, and the Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond immediately to a request for comment.