Conflux’s native token surged 105 per cent to $0.23 on Monday as the Chinese blockchain announced plans for an offshore yuan-pegged stablecoin, marking Beijing’s most significant challenge yet to dollar-based international payments. The token’s market capitalisation reached $1.1 billion as the announcement revealed China’s latest attempt to circumvent US financial dominance.

The stablecoin launch coincides with Conflux’s 3.0 network upgrade in August, which will boost transaction capacity to 15,000 per second. This processing power exceeds Visa’s average capacity, positioning Conflux to handle the international trade settlements that currently flow through SWIFT’s dollar-dominated network.

Conflux has partnered explicitly with AnchorX, Dongxin, and Ping An to target Belt and Road Initiative countries. The $1 trillion Belt and Road trade network represents China’s most significant opportunity to expand yuan usage, yet bilateral agreements have failed to dislodge the dollar from trade settlements. A blockchain-based yuan stablecoin could bypass the traditional banking infrastructure that keeps transactions flowing in dollars.

Beijing has struggled with this challenge for years. The People’s Bank of China promotes the digital yuan internationally while calling for a “multi-polar currency system”. But the official digital yuan requires direct central bank oversight, making international partners nervous about Chinese monetary surveillance.

Conflux offers a different approach, as the only regulatory-compliant public blockchain in China, it provides yuan exposure without Beijing controlling individual transactions. Belt and Road partners can access yuan liquidity without submitting to full monetary integration with China, which is a crucial distinction for countries wary of Chinese financial control. The explosive price rally reflects more than crypto speculation as Conflux combines regulatory approval, technical capability, and Belt and Road integration in ways that previous yuan stablecoin projects have lacked. While other attempts have withered, this initiative has the infrastructure and partnerships to facilitate actual trade settlements.

Conflux represents a new strategy for global monetary competition. Rather than confronting dollar dominance through central bank digital currencies, China is enabling private blockchain infrastructure that makes yuan adoption easier through market forces. If Belt and Road countries begin settling trade in yuan stablecoins, dollar dominance could erode gradually without triggering direct monetary confrontation.

The August launch will test whether blockchain technology can achieve what traditional monetary diplomacy has not: meaningful expansion of yuan usage in international trade.