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The cross-border e-commerce arm of Chinese tech behemoth Alibaba is working on a deposit token amid mainland China’s crackdown on stablecoins, according to CNBC.
Alibaba president Kuo Zhang told CNBC in a Friday <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/14/alibaba-plans-ai-subscriptions-stablecoin-like-payments-with-jpmorgan.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/14/alibaba-plans-ai-subscriptions-stablecoin-like-payments-with-jpmorgan.html">report</a> that the tech giant plans to use stablecoin-like technology to streamline overseas transactions. The model under consideration is a deposit token, which is a blockchain-based instrument that represents a direct claim on commercial bank deposits and is treated as a regulated liability of the issuing bank.
<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/stablecoins-101-what-are-crypto-stablecoins-and-how-do-they-work" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/stablecoins-101-what-are-crypto-stablecoins-and-how-do-they-work">Traditional stablecoins</a>, which these tokens closely resemble, are issued by a private entity and backed by assets to maintain their value. The report follows JPMorgan Chase — the world’s biggest bank by market capitalization — reportedly <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/jpmorgan-launches-deposit-token-base-blockchain" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">rolling out its deposit token to institutional clients</a> earlier this week.
The news also follows reports that Chinese technology giants, including Ant Group and JD.com, suspended plans to issue <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/cryptocurrency-regulations-in-hong-kong" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">stablecoins in Hong Kong</a> after regulators in <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/china-tech-giants-halt-hong-kong-stablecoin-plans" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Beijing expressed displeasure with the plans</a>. The report was just the latest of many suggesting that mainland Chinese authorities appear dead set on preventing a stablecoin industry from arising in the country.
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 Alibaba offices. Source: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Alibaba_Group#/media/File:20210810_Shenglong_Plaza.jpg" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Wikimedia</a>
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<h2 id="china-says-no-to-stablecoins">China says no to stablecoins</h2>
In July, both Ant Group and JD <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/jd-com-ant-yuan-stablecoins-challenge-dollar-dominance" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="null">expressed interest</a>&nbsp;in participating in Hong Kong’s pilot stablecoin program or launching tokenized financial products, such as digital bonds. Similarly, HSBC and the world’s largest bank by total assets — the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China — were <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/hsbc-icbc-hong-kong-stablecoin-license" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">reported to share these Hong Kong stablecoin ambitions</a> in early September.
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/columbia-business-professor-doubt-tokenized-bank-deposits" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="https://cointelegraph.com/news/columbia-business-professor-doubt-tokenized-bank-deposits">Columbia Business professor casts doubt on tokenized bank deposits</a>
Later in September, a now-removed report by Chinese financial outlet Caixin claimed that Chinese firms operating in&nbsp;<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/cryptocurrency-regulations-in-hong-kong" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/cryptocurrency-regulations-in-hong-kong">Hong Kong</a>&nbsp;may be forced to withdraw from cryptocurrency-related activities.&nbsp;According to the report, policymakers would also impose restrictions on mainland companies’ investments in crypto and cryptocurrency exchanges.
In early August, Chinese authorities reportedly instructed local firms to&nbsp;<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/chinese-regulators-urge-local-businesses-to-stop-stablecoin-promotion" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="https://cointelegraph.com/news/chinese-regulators-urge-local-businesses-to-stop-stablecoin-promotion">cease publishing research and holding seminars related to stablecoins</a>, citing concerns that stablecoins could be exploited as a tool for fraudulent activities. Still, China is not entirely devoid of stablecoin ties.
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/custodia-vantage-launch-platform-tokenized-deposits" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Custodia, Vantage Bank launch platform for tokenized deposits</a>
<h2 id="offshore-yuan-stablecoins-not-mainland-money">Offshore yuan stablecoins, not mainland money</h2>
In late July, Chinese blockchain Conflux announced a third version of its public network and introduced a new <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/conflux-launches-yuan-stablecoin-and-blockchain-upgrade" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">stablecoin backed by offshore Chinese yuan</a>. Still, the stablecoin aims to serve offshore Chinese entities and countries involved in China’s Belt and Road Initiative, not the mainland.
In late September, a regulated stablecoin <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/first-chinese-stablecoin-debut-race-heats-up" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">tied to the international version of the Chinese</a> yuan&nbsp;launched. Still, this product was also intended for foreign exchange markets and was launched at the Belt and Road Summit in Hong Kong, signalling a similar target market.
A recent analysis suggested that we should not expect <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/dont-expect-china-stablecoin-touch-mainland" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Chinese stablecoins to be allowed</a> to circulate in the mainland. Joshua Chu, co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association, said, “China is unlikely to issue stablecoins onshore.”
Magazine: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/hong-kong-isnt-loophole-chinese-crypto-firms-think/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_self">Hong Kong isn’t the loophole Chinese crypto firms think it is</a>

Alibaba weighs deposit token as China clamps down on stablecoins: Report

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