The concept behind the Budapest Renminbi Initiative Conference
The Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB) launched its Renminbi Program and the Budapest Renminbi Initiative Conference in 2015, marking a strategic turning point in Hungary’s financial and economic relations with China. Over the years, this initiative has strengthened bilateral ties, broadened financial cooperation, and positioned Budapest as a key renminbi hub in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). The 2026 edition takes place amid significant shifts in the global financial landscape. The international monetary system is increasingly shaped by geopolitical fragmentation and technological innovation, accelerating efforts to diversify cross-border payment channels and enhance financial resilience. In this context, the Conference will examine the renminbi’s evolving role within a more multipolar global financial architecture, assessing both the opportunities and structural constraints of its expanding use. It will also explore the regional dimension, focusing on how trade, investment, and financial corridors between China and the CEE region are developing in practice. By connecting global systemic change with concrete regional experience, the event aims to provide a forward-looking assessment of the renminbi’s strengthening international role.
This year’s lead speeches and panel discussions will be organised into two main topics:
- Renminbi Internationalization in an Evolving Global Financial Architecture
- Trade, Investment and Financial Corridors between China and the CEE Region in the Era of Next-Generation Global Financial System
Budapest Renminbi Initiative Conference 2026
The Role of Renminbi in the International Monetary System
12 November 2026
Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB) Buda HQ,
1013 Budapest, I. district, Krisztina körút 55.
PROGRAMME
08:30-09:00 Registration and welcome coffee
09:00-09:50 High-level opening
- Mihály VARGA, Governor, Magyar Nemzeti Bank
- Representative of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Hungary
- Representative of the People’s Bank of China
- Representative of the People’s Bank of China
9:50-10:05 Coffee break
10:05-11:10 Panel 1: Renminbi Internationalization in an Evolving Global Financial Architecture
As the global financial system becomes more fragmented and geopolitically contested, China is accelerating the internationalization of the renminbi through the development of alternative financial infrastructure designed to reduce reliance on the US dollar, mitigate sanctions exposure, and strengthen monetary sovereignty. Rather than prioritizing rapid full convertibility, the current strategy focuses on expanding cross-border RMB trade settlement, improving efficiency in current account transactions, and building a multi-layered ecosystem that enables direct, high-speed, and digital payments. This includes the expansion of cross-border payment systems, offshore clearing arrangements in major financial hubs, bilateral currency swap frameworks to support liquidity in emerging markets, and the advancement of digital currency platforms facilitating real-time settlement. While RMB usage in global payments remains relatively modest, the currency’s role is growing in bilateral trade, particularly with emerging countries and Belt and Road partners. The present phase of RMB internationalization appears less about challenging the global dominance of the US dollar and more about deepening regional and bilateral settlement channels. This panel will examine the opportunities and constraints embedded in this evolving architecture, assessing whether alternative payment infrastructure and digital innovation can meaningfully reshape global financial flows, and what structural, regulatory, and trust-related challenges may shape the RMB’s long-term international trajectory.
Lead speaker
- TBC
Moderator
- Zsolt KUTI, Executive Director, Magyar Nemzeti Bank
Panellists
- Mingshen ZHANG, Vice President, Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS)
- Wenwen LIU, Head of the Research Department, Shanghai Headquarters, China Central Depository Company (TBC)
- Joakim NILSSON, Regional Director, WeChat Pay (TBC)
11:10-11:25 Coffee break
11:25-12:30 Panel 2: Trade, Investment and Financial Corridors between China and the CEE Region in the Era of Next-Generation Global Financial System
This panel examines how trade, investment and financial corridors between China and the CEE region are being reshaped by the accelerating internationalization of the renminbi within an increasingly multipolar global financial system. In the past six years, the RMB’s share in global payments has nearly doubled, while cross-border RMB settlements reached RMB 64 trillion in 2024, reflecting approximately a 23% annual increase. China is actively deploying a comprehensive toolkit to deepen financial connectivity, including the expansion of CIPS, 42 bilateral central bank swap agreements, growing offshore clearing networks, and the rapid development of panda and dim sum bond markets. The Belt and Road Initiative - with cumulative engagements exceeding USD 1.3 trillion - further anchors RMB-based financing across infrastructure, energy and advanced manufacturing projects, offering new opportunities for CEE economies to integrate into alternative financial corridors. Drawing on concrete examples from banking, commerce and manufacturing, the panelists will demonstrate through their own institutional perspectives how regional RMB-based trade and investment corridors are evolving in practice and will debate the future role of the currency within a fragmented yet increasingly diversified global financial architecture.
Lead speaker
- TBC
Moderator
- Ádám BANAI, Executive Director, Magyar Nemzeti Bank
Panellists
- TBC
- TBC
- TBC
12:30-12:40 Closing remarks
- Dániel PALOTAI, Deputy Governor, Magyar Nemzeti Bank
12:40 Lunch