South China’s Hainan Province has made remarkable financial support to the region’s blockchain sector that would aid the development of the industry.
Local news outlet Xinhua Net reports today that the announcement was made at the city’s first blockchain pilot zone held in the Hainan Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ).
Notably, the Hainan province is working toward applying the tech in various sectors such as housing, healthcare, tourism, and trade.
To this effect, a special fund of 1 billion yuan ( $142 million) will be set aside to boost blockchain startups and foster talent cultivation, technological application, social investment, among others, the report noted.
As per the report, the Hainan FTZ is a pilot industrial area established in October last year by the provincial department of Industry and Information Technology and is regarded as the first government recognized blockchain pilot free zone in the whole of China.
In the same vein, the provincial department of ICT also launched the Hainan Resort Software Community (RSC), an internet industrial park, which has since been a blockchain hub for more than 100 blockchain startups, making it one of the fastest-growing “blockchain clusters across the country.”
The RSC currently has an initiative dubbed “Secure, Sharing, Compliance+ (SSC+)”, to facilitate the free flow of information, capital, goods, and personnel for members of the FTZ, with the scheme already attracting recognition from the UAE, the report added.
Even though China is not a favorable destination for cryptocurrency startups, the nation has always been friendly to blockchain-related initiatives, the technology that powers cryptos.
In October, China President Xi Jinping reportedly endorsed the adoption of the tech, as he believes its numerous benefits can be applied in various sectors, especially in banking and finance, which could further boost the nation’s economy.
Interestingly, a few days after President Jinping’s endorsement of the tech, reports emerged that the country’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is making plans to mark October 24 as Blockchain Day.
