China’s biggest messaging app WeChat suspends NFT accounts

Tencent’s WeChat has suspended some accounts related to so-called irreplaceable tokens (NFT) and clarified the rules around these digital collectibles.

NFTs are effectively digital tokens as works of art that have grown in popularity, with some selling for several million dollars. They are usually based on a blockchain platform, mainly Ethereum, with people paying for tokens in cryptocurrencies.

But China has taken a hard line on digital currencies, banning trade in them. NFT in China is not bought with cryptocurrencies. Instead, people pay with the Chinese yuan. They are also not built on a blockchain like Ethereum. Instead, they are built on other blockchains over which regulators oversee.

However, there is still no regulation of the NFT in the country. Consumers can buy these digital collectibles from the market, but secondary trade is very limited. Because NFTs can be speculative, technology companies are taking a cautious approach to avoid falling into the wrong side of any upcoming regulation.

Tencent said it has “fixed” public WeChat accounts to prevent the risk of speculation in digital currency transactions.

A Tencent spokesman did not confirm that the accounts had been suspended. But the official WeChat account on a Twitter-like service, Weibo responded on Wednesday to a local media report announcing that the accounts were banned.

He clarified the rules around NFT accounts on his platform. Official accounts confirmed by Tencent may display digital collectibles, but may not offer secondary sales. They must provide a certificate stating that they are registered and approved by the Chinese cyberspace regulator.

Tencent said WeChat’s mini-programs can only show NFT. Mini-programs are light versions of applications that run on WeChat.