Latest data from international bank Standard Chartered shows that its Renminbi Globalisation Index (RGI) rose to 224.8 in April - up from a base of 100 in January 2015 - indicating that the global use of the Chinese currency has more than doubled compared with a decade ago, according to a report sent to the Global Times on Friday.

Standard Chartered has revised the methodology of the RGI - the bank's gauge tracking the global use of the yuan - to better reflect the evolving landscape of yuan's internationalization and align with the relative importance and representativeness of its component indicators.

The revised RGI shows that global use of the yuan increased between February and April 2026, with the index rising to 224.8 in April from 212.1 in January.

The recent rebound in the RGI reflects two key drivers. On the one hand, escalating tensions in the Middle East have spurred greater demand for yuan settlement globally. On the other hand, it benefits from policy initiatives by the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) aimed at advancing currency internationalization, particularly following the increase in the total size of the RMB Business Facility (RBF) to 200 billion yuan ($29.53 billion) from 100 billion yuan, according to the report.

By channeling onshore liquidity to support offshore operations, the RBF provides funding for trade finance, capital expenditures, and working capital loans. Furthermore, the expansion of Dim Sum bond issuance - both in scale and issuer diversity - has bolstered the growth of the offshore yuan bond market, it said.

The 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) sets out the goal of accelerating China's development into a leading financial power. Standard Chartered expects that China will roll out further measures to promote yuan's internationalization. While not all initiatives are explicitly aimed at yuan's internationalization, enhancing Hong Kong's status as an international financial center will directly benefit the broader adoption of the yuan, it said.

For instance, if the HKSAR develops into an international gold trading hub, the yuan's global standing could be further enhanced. Deeper connectivity between the mainland and Hong Kong - and the creation of an integrated gold market ecosystem - would also strengthen the yuan's role in gold pricing and cross-border bullion transactions, the report noted.

"As the global monetary system accelerates toward multipolarity, the yuan's internationalization is ushering in an important opportunity. In the near term, the yuan is poised to solidify its role as an anchor currency within regional economic blocs. In the medium-to-long run, driven by the dual engines of digital currency and green finance, the yuan is well-positioned to evolve from a 'transactional currency' into a 'reserve currency,'" Tian Lihui, dean of the Institute of Financial Development at Nankai University, told the Global Times on Friday.

Consequently, prudent global asset allocation strategies should recognize this core exposure, which uniquely combines stability with long-term growth potential, Tian said.

As a platform jointly developed by the People's Bank of China, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, and other central banks to facilitate faster cross-border settlements using their respective currencies, the multi-Central Bank Digital Currency Bridge (mBridge) has witnessed continuous progress in recent years.

For example, Bank of Communications (BOCOM) Macau Branch joined the first cohort of institutions approved by the Monetary Authority of Macao to participate in the mBridge project on June 1. One day later, the branch executed two landmark transactions in Macau: It facilitated a cross-border remittance in e-MOP (digital Macau Pataca) for Macao Industrial Limited, and executed a 500 million yuan cross-border collection in digital yuan for Far East Horizon Limited. BOCOM Macau Branch's early access to mBridge provides local clients with faster, cheaper cross-border fund settlement services.