China’s CIPS Processes $214B in March as Russia, Iran Shift

China’s Cross-border Interbank Payment System processed roughly $214 billion (1.46 trillion yuan) in March, about 50% more than in February and roughly three times a typical monthly volume in 2021.

The increase coincides with growing use of the Chinese yuan and cryptocurrencies by Iran and Russia to settle trade and oil payments.

Iran has restricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz to what it calls “friendly” nations and implemented security tolls for vessels transiting the chokepoint. Reports say some payments for those tolls and for shipments are being demanded in yuan or cryptocurrency. Other reports state Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is seeking payment in crypto or yuan for about 20% of global oil shipments that pass through the strait.

Russia has stepped up yuan use since Western financial isolation intensified after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In an August 2025 interview, President Vladimir Putin said transactions between Russia and China are now almost entirely in rubles and yuan.

Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis reported that the value of crypto assets received by sanctioned entities rose sharply in 2025, reaching about $154 billion after a near 700% increase. Chainalysis data show more than $3 billion in crypto transfers tied to the IRGC in the final quarter of 2025, with digital wallets used to pay for commodities and shipping services.

China launched CIPS in 2015 to support cross-border yuan settlement. By the end of 2025, more than 1,700 financial institutions were connected to the network. Beijing has also been piloting the digital yuan, or e-CNY, for cross-border transactions with partners including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, allowing settlement without routing through U.S. correspondent banks.

In March, the share of oil transactions settled in yuan in Saudi Arabia reached 41%. Two large Saudi state-owned banks joined CIPS the same month. Global payment system data show the yuan accounted for about 3% of global settlements in early 2026, while the U.S. dollar retained roughly 51%.

Ding Shuang, chief economist for Greater China and North Asia at Standard Chartered, described the Middle East conflict as “a catalyst” and called the rise of yuan-denominated energy settlement the “beginnings of a ‘petroyuan.'” Toru Nishihama, chief economist at Daiichi Life Research Institute, predicted the shift away from dollar-dominated settlement will continue as alternative payment networks expand.

CIPS connectivity, pilots of the e-CNY and increased crypto transfers involving sanctioned entities have coincided with the shift in some oil and trade settlements toward non-dollar instruments. The changes have taken place alongside continued dominance of the dollar in overall global payments.