China launches its first regulated NFT marketplace

China will launch its first regulated NFT platform on January 1, 2023, a local media publication reported. The secondary market for trading NFTs is created by the state-owned Chinese Technology Exchange and Art Exhibitions China and a private corporate entity, Huban Digital Copyrights Ltd. The opening ceremony of the Chinese digital asset trading platform will be held in Beijing.

Besides NFTs, the platform will also allow the trading of copyrights related to digital collectibles, but it will be entirely regulated and will seek to prevent speculation in the secondary NFT markets. The platform’s trading license is based on the China Digital Exchange.

“In terms of industry supervision and regulation, digital collectibles are a new type of business, and laws, regulations, and regulatory policies will be gradually improved, so there are still some uncertainties,” said Yu Jianing, the expert on NFTs and metaverse developments in China.

China fully banned cryptocurrency in 2021 and made crypto transactions illegal (the possession of cryptocurrency is still protected by law as virtual property). Nevertheless, the nation is more open for the metaverse and NFTs. This month, the Chinese province of Zhejiang announced plans to develop a metaverse industry worth more than $28.7 billion by 2025. Other Chinese cities, such as Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Wuhan, have made similar plans to expand their metaverse presence.

China’s largest internet company, Tencent, was experimenting with NFT PFPs in July. But the same month, the company shut down Huanhe, the biggest and most popular NFT marketplace in China, due to low profits.