ICBC issues dim sum bonds

In June, the Bank of England became the first among European central banks to draw up a currency swap line with China. The line supports yuan users in the UK by providing liquidity whenever needed.

Last month, during UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne's visit to China, it was announced that China and the UK will introduce direct trading between the yuan and the pound.

Beijing also granted an 80 billion yuan quota for financial institutions in London to invest in China's domestic securities under the renminbi qualified foreign institutional investor program.

British Prime Minister David Cameron is scheduled to visit China next month, part of what he has termed an effort to help British companies tap into China's "vast and varied" markets.

"Clearly, nobody wants to be left behind in the yuan's internationalization, including London. Opportunities to be brought about by the yuan's global push are tremendous," said Zhang Qi, an analyst with Haitong Securities Co Ltd.

The UK first showed interest in offshore yuan trading in 2011. During 2012, the value of yuan-denominated letters of credit grew 13 times, as companies showed strong will in transacting their business in the Chinese currency. Also in 2012, the value of yuan-financed cross-border trade in London doubled to 33.6 billion yuan.

A report published last month by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication showed that the yuan has overtaken the Swedish krona, the South Korean won and the Russian rouble as the world's eighth most actively traded currency.