pa hrefhttpszapperfi targetblankZappera the decentralized finance DeFi dashboard for over monthly users announced a Mnbspa hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcomdefidashboardzapperraisesmtobuildonplatformappstore targetblankSeries Aanbspround lead bynbspa hrefhttpswwwframeworkvc targetblankFramework Venturesanbsplast weeknbspa hrefhttpsenwikipediaorgwikiMarkCuban targetblankMark Cubananbspand Ashton Kutchersnbspa hrefhttpssoundventurescomabout targetblankSound Venturesanbspalso participated in the roundppBorn out of a hackathon in the crypto startup has seen significant growth since its extendednbspa hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcomdefidashboardzappersnagsnewfundingfromdelphiandcoinbaseventures targetblankseed roundanbspin November of Acting as a hub for DeFi users to view swap stake and yield farms across multiple chains Zapper supports DeFi Protocols and recently surpassed billion in total transacted volume Its current web app plugs into users wallets but Zapper has plans to launch an onplatform app store for developers and is also working on creating a mobile appppZappers CEOnbspa hrefhttpscalinkedincominsebaudeta targetblankSeb Audeat states quoteverything is fragmented its on a bunch of different apps living different websites and web apps and our goal is really to reduce the friction and just have this one portal where you can track all your assets and manage and swap and farmquot Audet also compared Zappers coming app store to Shopify which will enable community members to pitch in with new featuresppZapper will use the fresh capital to accelerate the growth of its dashboard features with hopes to make DeFi easier by lessening the intricacies of crypto As Zapper funds the development of its new app store and mobile app the team will also look to addnbspa hrefhttpsethereumorgendevelopersdocsscalinglayerrollups targetblankEthereum layer rollupsanbspand other chain features for its usersp

pLast monthnbspa hrefhttpsmakerdaocom targetblankMakerDAOa the largest decentralized autonomous bank in the world took a swing at the traditional banking industry when they started offering decentralized mortgage financing to users who were looking to fix and flip houses Maker requires users to deposit collateral in the form of ETH and in return issue dollardenominated loans in the form of their native stablecoin DAI Users then take their newly minted DAI use it to fund the renovations on their home sell their home for profit repay their initial loan plus interest recover their collateralized ETH rinse and repeatppIf traditional banks were nervous about thea hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcommakerdaooncollisioncoursewithbankingregulators targetblanknbspemergence of definbspadecentralized finance before this new innovation is sure to send shivers down their proverbial spins Not only is there no need for preapproval or applications on MakerDAO but the fees are also much more competitive due to the lack of regulation and compliance cost needed to secure such defi loans Essentially anyone holding ETH can lock up their crypto as collateral and receive a loan no questions askedppWhile this service offering is still in its pilot phase in the US MakerDAO already secured K in loan financing last month They are targetingnbsp million in realworld loansnbspby the end of this year spanning from freight invoice lending financing of US farm properties and loans to solar facilitiesppnbspppstrongWhat This Means for DefistrongppWhile most activity in the defi space has been mostly relegated to cryptonative assets this feels like the first time the gloves are coming off and the Defi space is ready to directly compete with traditional leading institutions Not to be easily outdone this will surely spark a flurry of lobbying from traditional financial institutions to impose strict regulation on the defi industry quotIf you cant beat them regulate them out of existencequot While the multitrilliondollar banking industry is surely a formidable opponent my thesis on this is simple the market always chooses what isnbspbetter faster stronger If I was forced to bet Im putting my money on defi p

table border cellpadding cellspacing stylewidthtbodytrtd styleverticalaligntoppLast week was a sad week for Bitcoin diehards as one of our most beloved champions Elon Musk seemingly pulled the plug on his Bitcoin bet saying Tesla wouldnbspno longer accept Bitcoinnbspas payment for their cars due to environmental sustainability concerns In a direct assault on the worlds largest cryptocurrency the worlds largest man tweetedptdtrtbodytabletable border cellpadding cellspacing stylewidthtbodytrtd styleverticalaligntoptable alignleft border cellpadding cellspacingtbodytrtd styleverticalaligntoppimg alt srchttpsassetsbwbxioimagesusersiqjWHBFdfxIUibWUIscDRDkvxjpg stylewidthpx ptdtd styleverticalaligntopimg alt srchttpsimgsslconstantcontactcomlettersimagessysSgif styleheightpx widthpx tdtrtrtd styleverticalaligntopimg alt srchttpsimgsslconstantcontactcomlettersimagessysSgif styleheightpx widthpx tdtd styleverticalaligntopimg alt srchttpsimgsslconstantcontactcomlettersimagessysSgif styleheightpx widthpx tdtrtbodytablepWhile it is understandable that a company so closely tied to environmental preservation and sustainability would take such a stance it is still hard to believe that the company could flipflop so dramatically on the issue in the span of a few monthsppThe first elephant in the room is that the Bitcoin energy consumption debate is largely unfounded in reality As reported in our March stnbspa hrefhttpsmyemailconstantcontactcomIsBitcoinMoreEnvironmentallyFriendlyThanWeThoughthtmlsoidampaidIEOrZSCHeU targetblanknewslettera anbspa hrefhttpswwwjbscamacukfacultyresearchcentresalternativefinancepublicationsrdglobalcryptoassetbenchmarkingstudy targetblankstudyanbspby the University of Cambridge showed thatnbsproughly of crypto miners use energy from renewables as part of their energy mix with of the total electricity consumed coming from renewables For those who have done their research on Bitcoins energy consumption it feels less like this action was due to the environmental sustainability of Bitcoin and more about its perceived environmental sustainability For a company and a man so tied to environmental sustainability it feels like this was a reaction to a narrative risk as opposed to the truth that underly the topicppAs the energy debate has clearly become the top narrative for Bitcoin detractors it is now more important than ever for cryptocurrency enthusiast to find their voice and arm themselves with the facts to debunk the FUD However this announcement did not come without a glimmer of hope The tweet also made it clear that at this time Telsa does not plan to sell the Bitcoin they currently hold Clearly they still believe in the project but this may be a means of saving face for their diehard environmentalist investorsppAlthough this news dealt a sizable blow to the market cap of Bitcoin we must not forget the impact of a h news cycle With prices falling fast institutions are licking their chops to heavy up their exposure It wont be long before the news comes out of the next multimillion dollar Bitcoin purchase and the cryptocurrency world is set back in alignmentptdtrtbodytable

pa hrefhttpswwwcowencom targetblankCowena the American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company with over billion under management will now offer crypto custody solutions to hedge funds through its partnership withnbspa hrefhttpswwwpolysignio targetblankPolySigna an earlystage fintech company looking to drive the global use of digital assets by building critical custody and payment infrastructure solutions for institutionsppAs per the partnership agreement Cowen took a million stake in PolySign and lead the companynbspa hrefhttpswwwglobenewswirecomnewsreleaseenCowenandPolySigntoLaunchStrategicPartnershipGearedTowardProvidingClientsAccesstoCryptocurrencyandDigitalAssetshtml targetblank million Series Banbspthat was announced last Thursday The round also saw participation from Blockchaincom Race Capital Sandia Holdings and PilotRock Investments PolySign will use the fresh capital to accelerate its missiondriven development of institutionalgrade blockchain applicationsppldquoLed by a bestinclass team of cryptocurrency and financial services pioneers PolySign has developed proprietary nextgeneration blockchain technology that we believe will be foundational to the development of secure trusted digital asset infrastructurequot statednbspa hrefhttpswwwbloombergcomprofileperson targetblankJefferey M Solomona CEO of Cowen Headquartered in SanFranciscos Bay Area PolySignio indeed has a talented roster behind it Founded in bynbspa hrefhttpswwwcrunchbasecompersonarthurbritto targetblankArthur Brittoa the CoFounder of Ripple Labs and codesigner of XRP Ledger the leadership group consists ofnbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincominjackmcdonald targetblankJack McDonalda previously the CEO of Conifer Financial Servicesnbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincomintimkeaneyb targetblankTim Keaneyanbspwho served as VC for BNY Mellonnbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincominantoinetteogormanab targetblankAntoinette OGormana previously CCO at Ripple Labs andnbspa hrefhttpswwwcrunchbasecompersondavidschwartzaf targetblankDavid Schwartzanbspwho was previously the CTO and chief cryptographer at RippleppldquoAs digital assets continue to grow and mature as an asset class institutional investors need to trust custody and trading solutions on par with their requirements for investing in traditional securities Our partnership with PolySign is another example of how we at Cowen position ourselves to better serve our clients by identifying disruptive trends that we believe will impact investment markets for years to comequot says Solomon The news brings yet another institutional gateway and security option to service more investors looking to enter the cryptocurrency spacep

pLast Thursday the World Economic Forum released anbspa hrefhttpwwwweforumorgdocsWEFDigitalAssetsDistributedLedgerTechnologypdf targetblankreportanbspon the potential use cases of Distributed Ledger Technology DLT also known as blockchain The monstrous page report highlighted the views of top global experts in financial services policy and technology The report titled quotDigital Assets Distributed Ledger Technology and the Future of Capital Marketsquot explores many of the ways in which capital markets institutions and technology firms are experimenting with or building products enabled by DLT It illustrates how individual DLT use cases may address challenges or inefficiencies in specific markets and shares insights from relevant experts on potential paths forward challenges or enablers for these use casesppOne of the most eyepopping figures in the report was the estimated size of the total global market that may be disrupted by the emergence of DLT technology A Whoppingnbsp trillion While it was clear these experts did not expect these changes to happen overnight it was made abundantly clear that experts around the globe understand that blockchain is here to stay and that the opportunity in this industry is enormousppThe report also discusses in great length the composition of their total market opportunity estimation The trillion figure was comprised ofpulli trillionnbspEquity marketslili trillionnbspDebt marketslili trillionnbspSecuritized productslili trillionnbspDerivativeslili trillionnbspSecurities financing repurchase agreementslili trillionnbspSecurities lendinglili trillionnbspAsset managementfund administrationliulpnbspppstrongWhat This Means For CryptostrongppWith a current market cap of only trillion the report made it abundantly clear how early we all are in the adoption of this new technology It also gives the green light to any financial institutions that are considering building blockchainbased applications and provides a roadmap for those who have already taken the path In short this is an incredibly bullish report that will be widely received by institutions around the worldp

pForgive the shameless selfpromotion but last week was a big week for us atnbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklyco targetblankCryptoWeeklyappOn Wednesday we announced the launch of our completely rebuilt website and user experience With the launch we rolled out several unique and innovative features designed to support our cryptocurrency investors in their neverending quest for crypto industry intelligence We built a curatednbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklycocryptoyoutube targetblankCryptoFeedanbspthat delivers new content from the top voices in crypto every day We also increased the functionality and user experience of ournbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklycodomains targetblankCrypto Domainsanbspmarketplace and increased our frequency of reporting on cryptonbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklycofundingdeals targetblankFunding DealsappAlong with providing investor intelligence we also expanded our suite of industry awards for the top leaders companies and influencers in the crypto space Each year our team debates the rankings on our awards list based on a number of characteristics size of the community rate of innovation and impact on the world etc Our entire suite of industry awards now includesppnbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklyco targetblankCrypto anbspndash the top most influential people in cryptoppnbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklyco targetblankCrypto anbspndash the top cryptocurrency projectsppnbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklycocryptofemaleawards targetblankFemale anbspndash the top most influential females in cryptoppnbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklycocryptodefiawards targetblankDeFi anbspndash the top defi projectsppnbspa hrefhttpscryptoweeklycotopcryptocurrencyyoutubers targetblankYouTube anbspndash the top crypto YouTubersppWhen announcing the release CryptoWeekly CEO and CoFoundernbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincominmikegrantis targetblankMike Grantisanbspsaid ldquoOur new user experience will allow our users to discover new projects educate themselves on those projects and reach out to the companies behind them We have built a complete endtoend platform that connects cryptocurrency investors with the companies they want to invest inrdquoppCryptoWeekly was founded in as a way to connect everyday investors to the stories companies and leaders they care about Our latest website release is just another step in bridging the gap between cryptocurrency companies and their community of investorsppIf you are interested in partnering with CryptoWeekly on the newsletter of our new website please reach out to us atnbspa hrefmailtosalescryptoweeklyco targetblanksalescryptoweeklycoap

pLast week the nonfungible token NFT platformnbspa hrefhttpswwwbitskicom targetblankBitskia announced anbspa hrefhttpstechcrunchcombitskiraisesmillionfromaztobecometheshopifyfornfts targetblank million Series Aanbspfunding round led bynbspa hrefhttpsazcom targetblankAndreessen Horowitzanbspaz The round saw participation from other investors including Galaxy Digital and Kindred Ventures and notable celebrities such as JayZ LAU and MrBeastppPositioned as the quotShopify for NFTsquot Bitski provides mainstream brands game developers celebrities and other creators to create custom NFT storefronts Founded in bynbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincomindinch targetblankDonnie Dinchanbspandnbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincominjuliant targetblankJulian Teschera Bitski seeks to bypass the crypto complexity of many marketplaces making it easier and more approachable for noncryptoorientated consumers and brands to interact The San Francisco startup is taking a subscription approach powering the custom storefronts that can then sell directly through their own channels instead of directing consumers to open marketplacesppIn an aznbspa hrefhttpsazcominvestinginbitski targetblankblog postanbspabout the investment the firm asks quotWhy shouldnrsquot buying NFTs be as easy as buying a tshirt or ingame items with my credit card Why shouldnrsquot selling one as part of a brand be as easy as setting up a Shopify storequot This seamless enduser experience is exactly what Bitski sets out to accomplish throughnbspdirect credit card purchasing quotforgot your passwordquot functionality and by having user wallets hosted on Bitskis own server hardware Skepticism among crypto and decentralization purists will exist however the platform will help usher in a new user base of NFT consumers similar to the likes ofnbspa hrefhttpsnbatopshotcom targetblankNBA TopShotappThe round brings Bitskis total funding to date to some million The platform has already worked with notable brands such as Adidas amp the WWE Exact details of what Bitski plans to do with the fresh capital werent announced but they are hiring seenbspjobs and are determined to continue making Bitskis platform more accessible and userfriendlyp

pLast Thursday marked a landmark achievement for the cryptocurrency industry IOHK the development company behind Cardano announced the biggest blockchain deal in history with thenbspa hrefhttpsafricacardanoorg targetblankEthiopian governmenta The deal will deliver blockchainbased identities for overnbsp millionnbspstudents andnbsp thousandnbspsecondary school teachers in the countryppThis deal was the culmination of nearly four years of negotiations between IOHK and the Ethiopian government The Cardanobased identity systemnbspa hrefhttpsatalaprismioapp targetblankAtala PRISMa build by IOHK will provide decentralized identifies DID for each postsecondary student in Ethiopia These DIDs will track students performance attendance and extracurricular engagement while also tracking the performance of their teachersppMany in the western world take the concept of governmentissued identity for granted Having a passport and access to our traditional financial system seem to many as a human right however there are many in the emerging world who do not have this luxury Statesponsored cryptographic identity will create an explosion of economic activity in Ethiopia allowing for financial inclusion financing land ownership and reputation systems to emergeppWhile the announcement of the million person deal was a major milestone in the advancement of the crypto industry IOHKs work is far from done in Africa They are already in talks with over other African countries and plan to roll out their Ethiopian partnership to elementary students and later other sectors of the Ethiopian economyppnbspppstrongWhat This Means for the Crypto IndustrystrongppWhile many of the emerging DeFi applications on Ethereum show tremendous potential many of them are focused on the North American market a market that is not in dire need of the innovations that blockchain can bring By focusing its attention on Africa Cardano is targeting a market that is in dire need of progress Similar to how many third world countries leapfrogged coal and went straight to solar power or how they skipped the landline and went straight to mobile blockchain will allow the opportunity for many of these emerging countries to leapfrog much of the traditional financial system and move straight into the world of blockchainppWithin the next few years Africa may be one of the leading continents when it comes to blockchain adoption and development This will steam from the tremendous need for the technology it provides as well as the tireless work done by the IOHK team in driving its adoptionp

pIn what can only be considered the largest flipflops of opinion by any financial institution this decade JP Morgan has walked back their harsh criticism of Bitcoin and is now launching a new Bitcoin investment productppWith overnbspa hrefhttpspillarwmcomwealthmanagementjpmorgan targetblank trillionanbspin assets under management as of JP Morgan is one of the largest investment banks in the world In JP Morgan CEO Jamie Diamond made headlines tagging bitcoin asnbspanbspldquofraudrdquonbspanbspquotterrible store of valuequotnbspand even went as far as to call it ldquoa hrefhttpswwwcityamcomjpmorganchiefsayswewillhavetobeinvolvedwithbitcoin targetblankworse than tulip bulbsardquo and that he would fire any JP Morgan trader caught trading Bitcoin This was met with harsh criticism from the Bitcoin community when shortly after making those announcements the company took a position in Bitcoin capitalizing on the selfinduced dip However since that time the company has dramatically softened its toneppOn the February Daniel Pinto the copresident of JP Morgan Chase said thatnbspquotthe institution will have to be involvedquotnbspin cryptocurrenciesnbspEither due to the explosive growth of Bitcoin or the tens of thousands of angry customers that they neglected to offer the asset JP Morgan has finally come around albeit with their tail between their legsppnbspppstrongWhat You Need to KnowstrongpulliThe fund will be an actively managed Bitcoin fundliliNYDIG will be serving as the custodian for the fundliliIt is slated to roll out later this summerliliThe fund will be reserved strictly for private wealth clientsliulpnbspppstrongWhat this Means for CryptostrongppWhile crypto heads can take solace in the fact that they can say quotI told you soquot to JP Morgan this move actually represents a much larger tectonic shift in the way financial institutions are looking at Bitcoin However cold and bearish they may have seemed in the past the sheer amount of consumer demand for the asset will ultimately force the hand of any financial institution that wants to survive It is no longer risky to hold Bitcoin now its riskier not top

pa hrefhttpswwwalchemycomcryptodotorg targetblankAlchemya a blockchain developer platform announced last Wednesday that it had raised nbspmillion in anbspa hrefhttpstechcrunchcomalchemyraisesmatamvaluationtobetheawsforblockchain targetblankSeries Bnbsparound led bynbspa hrefhttpswwwcoatuecom targetblankCoatueanbspandnbspa hrefhttpswwwadditioncapitalcomteam targetblankAdditiona According to Crunchbase the company previously raised M and M in a Series A and venture round respectively bringing its funding since launch to M and a total to date over MppThe San Franciscobased firm was founded in bynbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincominnikilster targetblankNikil Viswanathananbspandnbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincominjosephlau targetblankJoseph Laua Alchemy isnt a blockchain but the infrastructure that helps DeFi projects launch applications and access Ethereum nodes In August last year Alchemy launched its full suite of products after a twoyear closed beta that served select teams such asnbspa hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcomdaiismovingbeyondetherbutdefiisntdecentralizedjustyet targetblankMakerDAOanbspandnbspa hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcomwhykybernetworktokenstripledtomdespitethecoronavirusrecession targetblankKyber NetworkappNownbspa hrefhttpsblogalchemyapiioblogalchemyyearinreview targetblankpowering over anbspof the worlds top Ethereum applications Alchemy operates similarly to that of Amazon Web services but for blockchain companies The firm has also played a major role in the explosion of NFTs being the technology behind every majornbspa hrefhttpswwwbloombergcomnewsarticlesgoldenstatewarriorsupnftgamewithchampionshipcollection targetblankNFT platformanbspsuch as DapperLabs Makerspace OpenSea Nifty Gateway and many moreppThe Series B came at a M valuation and adds to a growing trend of investors looking to fund key players in the blockchains backbone So far startups focusing on digital technology such asnbspa hrefhttpswwwchainalysiscom targetblankChainalysisanbspandnbspa hrefhttpswwwbloombergcomquoteDUS targetblankDigital Asset Holdingsa have raised billion in compared to the that brought in only billion last yearnbspa hrefhttpswwwlinkedincomintomglocer targetblankTom Glocera a lead director at Morgan Stanley and Alchemy investor says he chose Alchemy because he wants to quotinvest in the picks and shovelsquot that help make the ecosystem functionppNikil Viswanathan explains quotit really highlights the power of blockchain and the whole industry and how blockchain has become mainstreamquot adding quotAlchemy has very solidly shown we provide the same accelerating service for blockchain thatnbspa hrefhttpsawsamazoncom targetblankAmazon Web Servicesanbspdid for the internetquotppWith fresh capital at hand Alchemy looks to expand its suite of developer tools to other blockchains According to Joe Lau Alchemy is quotblockchain agnosticquot and seeks to help as many blockchain networks flourish as possible The firm will also look tonbspincrease its presence in US tech hubs and open offices in Europe and AsianbspOther investors in the round include DFJ Venture Capital the Glazer Family and The Chainsmokersp

pThe United States Securities and Exchange Commission SEC now has three Bitcoin ETF applications under review Last week it gotnbspa hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcomsecbeginsofficialreviewofkryptoinbitcoinetfapplication targetblankstarted with its reviewanbspof the recently filed Kyptoin Bitcoin ETF Kryptoin applied for approval of their Bitcoin EFT in but was denied SEC started reviewing its filing for the second time after Kryptoin filed with the Cboe BZX exchangeppIn another similar development the New York Stock Exchange filed anbspa hrefhttpswwwcoindeskcomnysefilestolistsharesofvalkyriesbitcoinetf targetblankB formanbspon behalf of the Valkyrie Digital Assets investment firm for its Bitcoin ETF Once the exchange accepts the filing it will kick off a review period of days during which the SEC will either approve or disapprove the application It may also end up asking for an extension of the review periodppWith Kryptoin up for review the SEC now has three active Bitcoin ETF applications to review The other two arenbspa hrefhttpswwwvaneckcomuseneducationinvestmentideasinvestinginbitcoinanddigitalassets targetblankVanEcknbspaandnbspa hrefhttpswwwwisdomtreeeuengbmediaeumediafileskeydocumentsfactsheetetfsecuritiesengbtcwswwisdomtreebitcoinpdf targetblankWisdomTreea Even if the SEC seeks an extension of the review period it has got a maximum of days to either approve or deny each of these applicationsppnbspppstrongBitcoin ETFs in North AmericastrongppThe launch of Bitcoin ETFs has gained much traction especially in North America after Canada launched the firstever Bitcoin ETF in February Thenbspa hrefhttpswwwfoolcastbitcoinetfinnorthamericashouldyoubuyit targetblankPurpose Bitcoin ETFanbspbecame the first exchangetraded fund to allow institutional and traditional finance investors access to the worldrsquos largest cryptocurrency The United States does not have any Bitcoin ETF so far If one or multiple of these filings manage to get approval it will expose the asset class to an entirely new category of institutional investors pension funds and endowmentsppMany industry experts believe that the introduction of a Bitcoin ETF in the US is now only a matter of time Two factors drive their convictionpollistrongExplosive Growthstrongnbsp Bitcoin has been experiencing the fastest growth of any asset ever however that growth has been kicked into high gear this year Having crossed the trillion dollar threshold as an asset class it has become a viable store of value in the portfolio of any treasury managerlilistrongChanging of the Guard strongnbspThe new SEC chair Gary Gensler has taught crypto and blockchain courses at MIT Although we are still unsure how Gensler will rule on the matter it is a great reassurance that the person in charge is fully competent and up to speed on cryptocurrency the SECrsquos attitude towards Bitcoins and the exchange trading of similar digital assetsliolpMany assume if one ETF is approved all active applications would be approved in order to remove any suspicion of favoritism or anticompetitive behavior Regardless of whos ETF gets approved and when we do know one thing for certain The launch of Bitcoin ETFs in the United States will serve as a great catalyst to once again ignite this Bitcoin supercyclep

More than 50,000 developers are actively involved in a local blockchain platform endorsed by the Chinese government. Yin Hejun, representing the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology, communicated the significant commitment by the local government to advancing the Web3 industry in a written response to the National Committee of the Chinese People Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) proposal.

China shifting to Web3

Yin emphasized that the suggestions related to enhancing resource support for Web3 technology research and development, fortifying technology supervision and management, promoting international cooperation, and intensifying publicity and promotion exhibit foresight and strategic alignment with the key priorities set forth by the Ministry.

The provided document recognizes the sturdy industrial base of China alongside its substantial potential for Web3, encompassing policy backing, technological exploration, and practical applications. The document highlights official directives on blockchain technology and ongoing innovation pilots exploring diverse applications, such as trade finance and intellectual property. Prominent Chinese technology enterprises like Ant Group, Baidu, and Huawei underscore the pivotal role of the consortium in this sector.

Advancement with a catch

To expedite blockchain adoption, the Ministry of Science and Technology, alongside other governmental entities, has introduced certain policies and standards. Local initiatives in Beijing and Shanghai specifically aim to nurture innovation within the Web3 sphere. Authorities are capitalizing on opportunities in this emerging field by creating a conducive environment through guidelines, committees, and targeted initiatives.

The embracing of Web3 technologies by China indicates a significant shift compared to its previous stance of prohibiting cryptocurrencies and cracking down on mining operations. Nonetheless, concerns linger around the Chinese CBDC, the digital Yuan, which, while positioned as an advanced payment mechanism, enables unprecedented surveillance and control by authorities.