PBOC Deputy Governor Calls for AI Cooperation with ASEAN in Finance

At the China-ASEAN Financial Cooperation and Development Forum on September 18, Lu Lei, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), delivered remarks on deepening AI cooperation in finance between China and ASEAN. He said AI is reshaping the logic of financial business and market operations, while posing new risks such as algorithmic black boxes and model hallucinations.

Lu emphasized that the "asymmetric understanding" between humans and AI—where AI can learn to interpret human behavior but humans cannot fully penetrate its internal decision-making—could bring deep challenges to the financial industry. He stressed the need to balance development and security, and noted that the PBOC has guided financial institutions to apply AI responsibly through planning, pilot programs and standards.

The deputy governor also highlighted the construction of a new-generation digital RMB infrastructure, which supports the integration of AI and smart contracts. He cited the newly launched "Shudiba·Lifu" service, built on the digital RMB cross-border payment system (CBETS), which uses smart agents and smart contracts to verify trade documents and warn of risks in cross-border settlement and investment financing.

Lu proposed joint efforts with ASEAN countries to build multilingual high-quality financial datasets, a secure AI computing power sharing mechanism, and a multimodal financial vertical model matrix, aiming to create an open and inclusive cooperation ecosystem.