The UK's Treasury meets with investors in London, wooing them in an Internet road show as it issues sovereign debt denominated in Renminbi.
The government announced the issuance on October 9th, when the City of London’s lord mayor Fiona Woolf visited Beijing. The UK will be the first country outside of China to issue bonds in Chinese RMB. The Treasury said it appointed HSBC, Standard Chartered and the state-owned Bank of China to run the sale. Currently, Britain holds a mix of reserve currencies in US dollars, euros, yen and Canadian dollars.
Analysts say the move signals a big step for the RMB toward a reserve currency and a internationalized medium of payment.