e-MOP moves to sandbox testing with whitelist users as 2027 launch target holds

Having announced a goal to launch e-MOP within two years in mid-2025, authorities have now entered the sandbox testing phase, with the Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) revealing that transaction testing is currently being conducted via a whitelist of users.

Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai, in his inaugural Policy Address, announced his commitment to advancing the research and development of the “e-MOP” system, outlining a plan to complete core system construction by the end of last year and conduct phased sandbox testing, while systematically broadening the digital currency’s application scenarios across cross-border trade and public services.

Subsequently, then-Secretary for Economy and Finance Anton Tai elaborated that the initial phase of promoting the digital pataca would concentrate on the retail sector, followed by the wholesale sector, with eventual expansion beyond Macau to integrate with Portuguese-speaking platforms, aiming to establish it as one of the digital transaction instruments for trade between Portuguese-speaking countries and China.

Notably, the e-MOP system is conceived as a central bank digital currency ecosystem designed to comprehensively encompass the daily consumption scenarios of both Macau residents and visitors. Its core attributes – including instant payment settlement and real-time fund arrival –serve to facilitate capital allocation and turnover channels for market participants.

According to AMCM, the system further aims to bolster the service capacity and architectural foundation of Macau’s financial infrastructure through the integration of advanced technologies such as blockchain, while simultaneously enhancing the competitiveness of Macau’s cross-border financial services.

According to the scheduled plan, the AMCM will, in the next phase, accelerate the expansion of sandbox testing across various sectors and customer segments – including e-government, public transportation, and campus settings.

The authority further disclosed that accessibility features will be incorporated, while international collaboration in the central bank digital currency domain will be enhanced, complementing existing initiatives such as the mBridge project.

The authorities intend to leverage the core technology of the e-MOP to enhance the efficiency of existing “Easy Pay” transaction switching, reconciliation, and fund clearing and settlement processes, thereby creating an optimized business environment conducive to shortening merchant settlement cycles.

They stressed that the steady reinforcement of supporting legal frameworks and regulatory standards will be pursued.

The AMCM successfully applied earlier this year to become a full member of the mBridge project — a multilateral central bank digital currency initiative that supports connectivity with existing financial infrastructure such as traditional large-value payment systems (RTGS) while also enabling direct interoperability among central bank digital currency systems across different jurisdictions.

An announcement was made yesterday at a seminar jointly held with the China-Portuguese-speaking Countries Central Banks at the Grand Lisboa Palace in Cotai that the first phase will see 11 local banks approved as participating institutions in the mBridge project, with the system set to officially open tomorrow for Macau’s participating banks to begin “on-bridge” transactions.

Turning to the European context, Luís Filipe Bruno da Costa de Morais Sarmento, a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Portugal, observed in his address that electronic payments have grown increasingly pervasive across the continent while cash usage has correspondingly diminished, asserting that these developments render the research and development of a digital euro a matter of necessity.