Some big news out of China: On the 29th of November, a Chinese court of law in the city of Hangzhou ruled that NFTs are virtual property that the law must protect.
Blockchain technology has always been a challenge to the establishment. It threatens to bring a new dawn of de-centralized gaming, finance, and ownership which big money and government could have little control over. The popularity of this new tech, however, cannot be squashed. This has led governments and legacy organizations to take an ‘if you can’t beat them, join them’ philosophy as more big names have jumped in on the blockchain bonanza.
The Future is Uncertain
Despite the watershed ruling, the court admitted that there is currently no legal definition for NFTs in China’s laws.
China has somewhat of a troubled relationship with blockchain tech. In June of 2022, the country’s most popular social network, WeChat put a ban on all NFT and crypto activity. While In 2021, the government also banned cryptocurrency trading and mining.
As NFTs are built using blockchain technologies, many assumed they would be entirely prohibited. However, this has yet to be the case. The government implemented its “Blockchain Services Network (BSN),” which has somewhat capitalized on the popularity of NFTs while disconnecting them from the crypto-currencies surrounding them. NFT minting and circulation are still allowed, however, trading is strictly prohibited.
Source NFT Plazas
