China’s Beijing unveils 2-year DLT development action plan

After embedding blockchain in its digitization plan, China’s capital city of Beijing is keen on increasing the size of its Web3 investment with a new action plan. According to a local report, Beijing is eyeing a two-year plan to trigger an increased adoption rate and infrastructure for the emerging technology. Dubbed the Beijing Blockchain Innovation and Application Development Action Plan, local authorities are teaming up to achieve a list of Web3 objectives. The plan will see the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission collaborate with the Cyberspace Administration Office and the Bureau of Commerce to realize the objectives. With other agencies tapped to participate in the action plan, the initiative will start its operations from mid-2025 to mid-2027. The initiative advocates for increased funding for blockchain research, particularly in cryptography, confidential computing, and distributed ledgers. Furthermore, a key part of the two-year plan will see authorities focus on improving blockchain infrastructure in Beijing. Authorities will collaborate to set up a national blockchain hub node, a revolutionary distributed data directory, and a blockchain-based evidence storage unit. “The aim is to optimize business processes, ensure trustworthy data sharing, and innovate service models, establishing benchmark applications to drive broader blockchain adoption,” read the report. To achieve the targets, Beijing authorities are pledging a capital injection of 100 million yuan ($14 million) per year. The fund will turbo-charge Beijing to become the blockchain capital of mainland China, powering 10 breakthrough Web3 achievements in the next 24 months. Apart from an initial focus on blockchain development in Beijing, the plan still has national Web3 ambitions. The initiative notes that the gains made in the next two years will be amplified in the rest of Mainland China. The new initiative follows a white paper released by Beijing’s authorities putting blockchain at the center of its digital development plans. At the time, the white paper prioritized blockchain innovation after the country issued a blanket ban on digital currencies. In 2023, the city pledged to train at least 10,000 engineers in blockchain to power the digital revolution. Beijing is also leveraging other emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technology, upskilling its workforce to keep pace with the changes. MIMOS Berhad unveils Malaysia Blockchain Infrastructure to trigger Web 3 adoption Malaysia’s national applied research center, MIMOS Berhad, has rolled out a plan to improve blockchain adoption metrics in the Southeast Asian country. MIMOS Berhad’s MBI will play host to a range of blockchain-based services with a national outlook for Malaysia. The infrastructure will support Malaysia’s Web3-powered MyDigitalID, a raft of decentralized finance (DeFi) applications, and digital collectibles. At the core of MBI is its support for a wide range of digital assets, with enterprises and individuals having access to the perks of security and interoperability. While details are still sparse, there is chatter that MBI will support stablecoins, a central bank digital currency (CBDC), and digital currencies. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are said to change the landscape for digital ownership in Malaysia, with the MBI tipped to provide advanced support for the collectibles. However, the report predicts that the blockchain-based digital ID service will be the biggest use case for MIMOS Berhad’s MBI. Industry service providers are currently dabbling with potential use cases for MBI across several verticals. The report notes that the blockchain-based services powered by MBI will debut in the supply chain, virtual currency custody, and identity management verticals. Apart from the said use cases, a national blockchain standard via the launch of MBI is expected to attract a wave of foreign investment into the local ecosystem. A wave of foreign-based blockchain service providers is flooding into Malaysia to set up shop in the Southeast Asian country. The report did not shed light on the technical details behind MBI, but there are talks that the project will lean on homegrown solutions with an eye on uniformity. Despite lacking technical data, the report disclosed that MIMOS Berhad will prioritize security standards and interoperability for the MBI. A growing streak of blockchain-based use cases MIMOS Berhad’s MBI launch follows a string of blockchain use cases making their real-world debut in the Southeast Asian country. In February, Malaysia’s anti-corruption agency turned to blockchain and AI to stifle fraud activities. The country is also inching toward blockchain-based tokenization for on-chain settlement and halal certificate verification. Watch: sCrypt Hackathon students realize there’s more to blockchain