China Approves 224 New Blockchain Projects from Big-Name Brands

Blockchain projects in China need to be approved to be added to a registry. The state has been ramping up such approvals and has now announced it is allowing another 224 projects to proceed.

New Batch of Blockchain Projects Approved in China

The Chinese state has approved 224 blockchain projects that will soon go into production. The approval is the third batch to pass state censors. Alice Crypto (@AliceolaCrypto) tweeted about the announcement with a screenshot of the official approval. Nearly 40% of the approved applications were from Beijing itself. The largest category was ‘fintech,’ which accounted for 53 of approved projects. Many of the approved projects were from big-name brands in China. For example, Walmart China had its blockchain concept approved intended for food safety tracing. Baidu, JD, Alibaba, Suning, China Mobile, China Merchants Bank, and others were also mentioned on the approved list. China Merchants Bank, for example, gained five approvals for financial services. In all, the blockchain ecosystem in China is growing, and the state seems keen on keeping up the momentum. We will likely see various prototypes be launched in China by year’s end.

China Bets Big on Blockchain After COVID-19 Scare

China is betting that technological innovation will propel it forward now that it has the COVID-19 pandemic under control (or so it claims). In the past month, the state has been once again focused on blockchain technology. The ultimate goal is to create a ‘sovereign blockchain’ for the country and transition the yuan to a blockchain ledger.  Developments are quickly adding up. As BeInCrypto reported, the state has formed a National Blockchain Committee with giants like Huawei and Tencent. This group will help determine standards for the industry in the country. Efforts to implement blockchain technology are already underway in the country as well. Its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) will soon be tested in four different cities with global corporations like Starbucks and McDonald’s. Altogether, these developments have led some in the industry wondering: could the ‘China blockchain narrative’ lead the market in 2020? As of now, it is too early to tell. However, if the United States continues to be bogged down by COVID-19 issues for the rest of the year, China may steal the spotlight for a moment.