In last a few days, Xi Jinping, Presiident of China, said, "the value of blockchain is 10 times that of the internet".
Besides the high praises coming from the top of the state, there’s action, too: in the past few days, Chinese central bank developed a system to issue blockchain-based checks instead of paper ones, while Alibaba-affiliated insurtech firm promoted blockchain use in healthcare industry. Here’s how China got there, and how state-supported blockchain adoption can coincide with severe cryptocurrency regulation.
Strong, but troubled market
China is a major player in the Bitcoin market, hosting a substantial share of Bitcoin miners (in 2017, it was estimated that 50 to 70 percent of Bitcoin mining took place in the country) and Bitcoin trading volume, although both factors used to be more impressive before a wave of regulatory suppression. At the moment, cryptocurrency trading is prohibited in the country: after the last fall’s crackdown on local exchanges and ICOs, people in China can hold cryptocurrencies, but cannot legally exchange them for fiat money.
Blockchain over Bitcoin
Despite the strict regulation of cryptocurrencies, China has been significantly more bullish on Blockchain. Indeed, China is one of the first countries in the world to mention the technology in a state-level policy: in 2016, Blockchain was added into the 13th Five-Year Plan, a road map for national development from 2016 to 2020.
Recently, on May 28, the technology enjoyed even more endorsement from the top government, as President Xi Jinping stated: “The new generation of information technology represented by artificial intelligence, quantum information, mobile communication, internet of things, and blockchain is accelerating breakthroughs in its range of applications.”
Future prospects: nationwide blockchain standards
This year, Blockchain’s future in China seems even brighter: with the appointment of the new, pro-market head of PBoC, the country is likely to release more Blockchain-boosting legislations. Moreover, lately, the director of the Institute of Digital Currency at PBoC has been bullish on the technology as well.
t seems that by the end of 2019, China will go as far as to release nationwide blockchain standards, so that the technology will indeed become essential part of the country’s technological advancement.
Source:- https://cointelegraph.com