The platform would make it possible to swap copyrights pertaining to digital assets

China will launch its first regulated platform for trading nonfungible tokens (NFT) on January 1, 2023, according to local news outlet Sina News, which reported this on December 28. The state-owned Chinese Technology Exchange, the state-owned Art Exhibitions China, and the private company Huban Digital Copyrights Ltd. collaborated to create the firm. It performs the role of a secondary market for the trading of NFTs.

The platform would make it possible to swap copyrights pertaining to digital assets in addition to non-fungible tokens. The project's objective, according to a person with knowledge of the issue, is to "control and avoid the excessive speculation in secondary [NFT] markets." According to Yu Jianing, a leading authority on Chinese advancements in digital assets and the metaverse

“In terms of industry supervision and regulation, digital assets represent a new form of commerce, and much regarding laws, regulations and supervisory policies remains to be refined. Therefore, a deal of uncertainty exists. Platforms have a clear responsibility for the listing and trading of digital assets. Relative to intellectual property rights and digital copyrights, digital assets face a greater risk of regulatory soundness.”

NFTs are virtual properties that are legally protected and "have the object characteristics of property rights, including value, scarcity, controllability, and tradeability," according to the Hangzhou Internet Court, a Chinese court that specializes in internet-related legal disputes. Although bitcoin trading has been prohibited in China since 2021, it is still regarded as virtual property that is protected by the law.