China sets 2030 target for national blockchain network and regional hubs

China has set a 2030 target to largely complete a national blockchain network, placing a central backbone, regional hubs, and distributed digital identity services in its latest five-year information technology plan. Summary 2030 is the target for largely completing China’s national blockchain network. Regional programs cover blockchain applications in logistics, finance, manufacturing, agriculture, and trade. Distributed digital identity and privacy-preserving computing appear in the plan’s infrastructure and security provisions. Digital yuan development remains part of the agenda, without a transaction target or integration timetable. The Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission issued the National Informatization Plan for the 15th Five-Year Period, according to an Oct. 23 announcement from the Cyberspace Administration of China. The 14-page document directs authorities to build blockchain infrastructure and develop applications in shipping, government services, taxation, and carbon reduction. The plan describes a future construction target, without announcing that the national network is operational. Its blockchain provisions do not name a native cryptocurrency, approve token tradi...