While rising, the yuan's share of global currency trading is still only about 2 percent, compared with 87 percent for the dollar, according to the BIS report. Daily volumes are less than for Mexico's peso and about half those of Canada's dollar.

Many banks and companies have yet to set up the necessary infrastructure to facilitate transactions, according to Derek Sammann, a senior managing director at Chicago-based CME.

“As part of the internationalization of any currency, you need global banking facilities to handle the payment of the underlying currency,” Sammann said in an Oct. 22 interview.

Kate McNally, a vice president at San Francisco-based Union Bank, said her bank's push for offshore yuan business is making progress, with 150 percent more transactions handled in the first nine months of this year than in the same period of 2012.

Eoin Treacy's view The internationalisation of the Yuan can be viewed as a meaningful step on the road to full currency convertibility. The process has been in motion for a number of years and continues to develop. It has been possible to open Yuan denominated bank accounts in Singapore for a number of years while businesses are finding it increasingly convenient to settle accounts in Yuan. The opening of the free trade zone in Shanghai is another step on the way to creating an international market for Yuan and represents an attempt to increase the city's standing as a financial centre.

The Offshore Deliverable Renminbi continues to appreciate against the US Dollar. Since 2010, the Dollar has encountered resistance in the region of the 200-day MA on successive occasions. It spent two months trading above the trend mean last year but failed to break above CNH 6.4 and subsequently resumed its downtrend. A sustained move above CNH6.2 would now be required to check medium-term Yuan dominance.

The Wisdomtree Chinese Yuan Fund is an actively managed ETF with a market cap of approximately $221 million. While somewhat overextended relative to the 200-day MA at present, a sustained move below $26 would be required to question medium-term upside potential.

While the US Dollar/Yuan is the most politicised of the Yuan's cross rates, China does more trade with Europe. The Euro has been mostly rangebound against the Yuan since early 2012. It encountered resistance last week in the region of the upper boundary and a sustained move above CNY8.5 would be required to suggest more than temporary Euro dominance.