The Biden administration is stepping up scrutiny of China's plans for a digital yuan, with some officials concerned the move could kick off a long-term bid to topple the dollar as the world's dominant reserve currency, according to people familiar with the matter.

Now that China's digital-currency efforts are gathering momentum, officials at the Treasury, State Department, Pentagon, and National Security Council are bolstering their efforts to understand the potential implications, the people said.

American officials are less worried about an immediate challenge to the current structure of the global financial system, but are eager to understand how the digital yuan will be distributed and whether it could also be used to work around U.S. sanctions, the people said on the condition of anonymity.