China Launches Blockchain-Based Service Network for Global Commercial Use

Six months after the beta test launch, China’s Blockchain-based Service Network — or BSN — is now officially available for global commercial use. 

Various Chinese government officials and heads of organizations gathered for a meeting in Beijing on April 25 where they announced the public launch of the BSN.

The BSN is a global infrastructure to help blockchain projects create and run new blockchain applications for a lower cost. It also aims to accelerate the development of smart cities and the digital economy. 

China Mobile, China UnionPay, and Huobi China together worked towards the creation of the BSN.

Off to a flying start

Both corporate and individual developers have shown interest in the Blockchain-based Service Network. According to the report, more than 2,000 developers tried BSN in the six months since its beta release on October 15, 2019. The developers on BSN created applications to aid public welfare charity, item traceability, and electronic invoices.

During the Beijing meeting, Shan Zhiguang, chairman of the Blockchain Service Network Development Alliance, stated that the network currently has 128 public nodes. 76 of these nodes are in China, 44 are under construction, and the remaining 8 are overseas city nodes, which cover six continents. By the end of 2020, Zhiguang revealed, they plan to have at least 200 nodes in the network.

With the official launch of the BSN, the network will no longer have any restrictions on the development or deployment of applications and accounting that were applicable during the beta period. Developers on the network will also have the freedom to upgrade their applications at any time.

This is yet another achievement for China in terms of bringing wider blockchain adoption and leveraging blockchain to advance its technological development. Additionally, China has been actively working on its digital central bank currency. According to an April 23 report by Cointelegraph, Starbucks and Mcdonalds were already testing the digital yuan.