The renminbi’s future as an international currency and questions about whether it might dethrone the dollar have long captivated students of the international monetary system. But while renminbi internationalisation has advanced, the record is spotty and the gains modest. Progress towards creating a fully internationalised currency – a means of payment, a unit of account and store of value – is likely to remain modest and constrained. Nor is it clear whether a fully internationalised renminbi is China’s ambition, as distinct from helping insulate Chinese trade and payments from US sanctions and geoeconomic ... (full story)