China Daily, an English-language newspaper under the auspices of the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party, has embarked on an ambitious journey to establish its very own metaverse and nonfungible token (NFT) platform. In a recent announcement, China Daily disclosed its intent to allocate 2.813 million Chinese yuan ($390,000) to a third-party contractor who can craft the NFT platform within the budgetary parameters. The chosen contractor may be either a Chinese or foreign firm, well-versed in the intricacies of blockchain technology. Furthermore, the blockchain firm selected to execute the project must have the capacity to handle a staggering 10,000 transactions per second on its mainnet.

Interested contractors have until October 17 to submit their applications and develop the platform within a three-month timeframe. The primary objective of the China Daily NFT Platform is to enhance the global influence of Chinese culture through various means, including the utilization of the metaverse, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), and blockchain, along with invaluable digital assets (NFTs), big data, cloud computing, and other cutting-edge technologies.

The developers have stipulated that the platform must facilitate the seamless uploading, display, and management of digital collections while accommodating diverse multimedia formats and collection types. Additionally, the NFT platform will incorporate features for pricing, bidding, and limited-time offerings, as well as support multi-currency settlement.

In conjunction with its proprietary platform, China Daily plans to select suitable domestic and overseas mainstream NFT platforms for the issuance of digital collections, aligning with the project’s goals and target audience. Foreign platforms considered for this purpose encompass, among others, OpenSea, Rarible, SuperRare, Foundation, and more.

It is worth noting that China has enforced a ban on all forms of cryptocurrency transactions since 2021. However, certain blockchain entities continue to operate within the country, albeit under the vigilant scrutiny of law enforcement authorities.