China: PBOC Begins Blockchain Rollout With ‘Blockchain Registry Open Platform’

China’s central bank realized the first of what will likely be many Blockchain implementations in the form of the Blockchain Registry Open Platform (BROP), released Monday, March 26.

Unveiled at the Global Financial Science and Technology Summit in the city of Hangzhou, BROP is an open Blockchain protocol developed by the Zhongchao Blockchain Research Institute. The Institute is the last link in a chain of subsidiaries under ultimate ownership of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC).

BROP targets multiple economic sectors and principally aims to decrease bureaucratic burdens, including authentication requirements for government organs.

The unveiling sees the PBOC finally bring to life the results of its fervent ongoing Blockchain patent activity, the bank having submitted almost 70 such patents last year. In 2017, China reportedly filed the most Blockchain patents of any country in the world.

“We started the layout of blockchain technology in early 2015 and set up the Zhongchao Blockchain Research Institute last year,” Fan Guifu, CEO of the Institute’s umbrella corporation Zhongchao Credit Card Industry Development told local news outlet Tencent.

' Our key focus is the development of blockchain and other emerging financial technologies. '

While China’s draconian stance on both cryptocurrency trading, ownership and investment continues, Blockchain has long been a topic of interest for authorities.

In August last year, Cointelegraph reported on a conspicuous hiring maneuver by the PBOC looking for Blockchain experts.