Blockchain in government and Defi antics: Blockheads

Governments love blockchain

• Huawei signed an agreement with China’s Copyright Protection Center to build a blockchain-based copyright management system dubbed “Digital Copyright Identifier.” (Tom.com, in Chinese)
• App platform Vechain is partnering with the government of Hainan, China’s southernmost province, to build a blockchain-based governance system for Wenchang, the “first aerospace cultural and tourism city.” The municipality aims to raise the profile of China’s space exploration industry. Vechain, along with Kingsoft Cloud, will build a “smart city brain” using blockchain, artificial intelligence, and big data. (Vechain official medium post)
• The central government launched its first “city blockchain innovation rankings” at a conference in Beijing. The program tallied up “objective data” on cities’ innovation and adoption of the technology. The capital topped the list with 99.82 points, and Shenzhen came second with 91.2 points, just above Shanghai. (Sina Finance, in Chinese)
• The eastern province of Fujian launched 20 blockchain projects aiming to spur innovation and revamp some local government functions. The projects include government services, public welfare, food safety, and industrial and agricultural production. Along the “Digital Fujian” project, the Blockchain Services Network (BSN) started construction of a node in the province. (Xinhua News Agency, in Chinese)
• The BSN said on Monday the platform will be compatible with smart contract-oriented blockchain-agnostic programming language Digital Asset Management Language. The language will be the “exclusive standard” for application of decentralized applications, BSN architects said. (TechNode)
• Meanwhile, a bill aimed to boost US competitiveness in the blockchain field passed through the US House Energy and Commerce Committee to the US House of Representatives. (Official Twitter of Cathy McMorris Rodgers, primary bill sponsor)

READ MORE: BSN taps DAML as ‘exclusive standard’ for dapp development

All aboard the Defi train

• The week in China’s decentralized finance world started with an online movement among investors to take down centralized exchanges by withdrawing their cryptocurrency deposits. The impact on reserves was small. Some exchanges blocked withdrawals citing unexpected maintenance. The movement came right after Sushiswap, a Defi token that had reached unprecedented popularity, crashed. (TechNode)
• A few days later, the anonymous co-founder of Sushiswap, 0xmaki, said in an interview that the project plans to launch a Chinese-language interface. (Coindesk)
• Cryptocurrency exchange Binance launched a $100 million investment fund focused on early-stage projects in decentralized finance. The exchange released its own Ethereum-compatible blockchain on Sept. 1, saying a number of projects were already working on the chain. (Cointelegraph)
• Police in China raided cryptocurrency exchange Gate.io over the listing of Defi token Kimchi. (Coingeek)

The mining equipment makers

• Crypto currency rig maker Canaan Creative announced a $10 million share buyback, following better-than-expected Q2 earnings results. The buyback has been approved by the board of directors and will take place over 12 months starting Sept. 22. (Canaan)

READ MORE: Blockheads: China sets global blockchain standards and Canaan is alive

• The Battle of Bitmain drags on. Wu Jihan took back control of the world’s biggest cryprocurrency mining equipment maker’s Beijing arm. Wu was ousted by his rival Zhan Ketuan in May, whom he had ousted in October. (TechNode)