China Set to Debut NFT Marketplace in the New Year

China will open its first ever authorized platform for trading non-fungible token (NFT) on January 1st, 2023, according to an article from local media outlet Sina News that was published on December 28. 

The state-owned Chinese Technology Trade and Art Exhibitions China, along with the privately-owned Huban Digital Copyrights Ltd. formed the organization, which serves as a secondary market for the buying and selling of NFTs.

The platform will make it easier to trade copyrights for digital assets in addition to NFTs. According to an individual acquainted with the project, its goal is to “regulate and avoid the excessive speculation in secondary [NFT] markets.” 

Yu Jianing, a well-known authority on Chinese advancements in digital assets and the metaverse, said in an interview that “In terms of industry supervision and regulation, digital assets represent a new form of commerce, and much regarding laws, regulations and supervisory policies remains to be refined.”

“Therefore, a deal of uncertainty exists. Platforms have a clear responsibility for the listing and trading of digital assets. Relative to intellectual property rights and digital copyrights, digital assets face a greater risk of regulatory soundness,” Jianing said.

China’s CBDC Initiative

The Chinese central bank is putting forth a constant effort to draw new customers. China recently increased awareness of the use of the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), the digital yuan (e-CNY). 

Over the Holiday weekend, a new function was added to the China CBDC wallet app. With this new feature, users can now transfer money using an electronic version of the typical “red packet,” which originated in China but is also used in other parts of the world.

Notably, this year began with the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) introducing a pilot test wallet for the CBDC. 

On his part, Yi Gang, governor of PBoC, is working to ensure that the digital Yuan strikes a “delicate balance” between privacy and security protection and the suppression of criminal activity.