Tencent’s foray into the decentralized land is certainly a departure from the company’s previous business model, but it may well be a sign of things to come in the blockchain world. After all, web3 is quickly becoming the de facto standard for decentralized applications – and Tencent evidently recognizes this. If successful, Tencent’s efforts could lead to even more widespread adoption of blockchain technology in China and beyond.
It’s unknown what prompted Beijing to change its stance on cryptocurrencies, but the timing of Monday’s announcement suggests that regulators are slowly starting to accept digital currencies as legitimate financial instruments. The decision to allow retail investors to trade Ether and Bitcoin makes the market more accessible and likely encourages greater investment in this burgeoning sector.
China’s caution in the face of technological disruption could indicate that it is not as interested in taking part in the digitization of value transfer as some other countries. While its worries over crypto market volatility are valid, China at least wants to experiment with caution and keep its involvement limited so as to avoid any potential disruptions.
For the first time, it is being openly discussed that China may actually be supportive of Hong Kong’s ambitions to become a crypto hub. The reason for this may be twofold: first, as Bloomberg reports, officials in Beijing see crypto as an opportunity to prevent mainland residents from cashing out and fleeing the country; second, Chinese authorities may see Hong Kong as a testbed for their own fledgling cryptocurrency regime.
Tencent’s recent support for a high-profile web3 event could indicate that the firm is growing increasingly interested in the technology. This move follows the company’s earlier work on consortium blockchain projects with corporate partners, which suggest that Tencent understands the value of working within system controlled by others.
Tencent’s foray into the NFT space appears to have had mixed success. The company’s branded NFT platform, Huanhe, shut down only a year after launch. Outside of China, however, Tencent attempted to make inroads by backing Australia’s web3 gaming firm Immutable. While it is too early to tell whether Tencent will be successful in the space, its efforts may set an example for other Chinese tech giants looking to play a more active role in blockchain technology and related startups.
Tencent’s foray into web3 seems more confident and tangible this time around. The firm’s cloud computing arm, Tencent Cloud, revealed that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Ankr to jointly develop a suite of blockchain API services. That means Tencent has officially joined the race with cloud providers like AWS to attract web3 developers. By partnering with Ankr, Tencent is aiming to provide developers with an easier way to access and use blockchain technology. This move could help the company capture a larger share of the digital economy.
As the leading internet company in China, Tencent has a reputation of being one of the most forward-thinking and innovative companies around. Their latest move into the world of web3 infrastructure shows that they are serious about developing this new technology and making it mainstream. They have teamed up with some of the most well-known builders in the space, including Avalanche, Scroll, and Sui, to create a powerful ecosystem that will allow them to easily integrate blockchain technology into their existing products. This is an exciting time for those interested in web3 development as Tencent Cloud becomes another major force to be reckoned with.
