Speaking in a recent interview with Italian publication L'Economica, Ren said that China should not wait for Libra to launch before issuing its own cryptocurrency.
"Even China is able to issue such currencies, why wait for Libra? The strength of a state is greater than that of an Internet company," he said.
China has had a tempestuous history with cryptocurrency, as it previously banned cryptocurrencies for a short period during the height of the global craze surrounding the digital tokens.
It is also unlikely that China's potential answer to Libra would be as decentralised as Bitcoin or Ethereum, as this would reduce the government's control over the movement of finances across its borders.
