The Chinese government has intervened to halt the stablecoin initiatives of major tech companies in Hong Kong, including Alibaba's Ant Group and JD.com. These companies had sought to issue yuan-pegged stablecoins but were advised by the People's Bank of China (PBoC) and the Cyberspace Administration of China to suspend their plans. The PBoC raised concerns that private stablecoins could compete with the digital yuan and pose financial risks. Former PBoC chairman Zhou Xiaochuan emphasized these concerns during a finance forum in August. Ant Group and JD.com were among 77 companies interested in stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong, but mainland regulators have taken a cautious stance, advising firms to cease stablecoin-related research and tokenization of real assets.