China’s Ant Group launches blockchain service brand “Zan” for Web3 developers
China’s tech giant Ant Group has launched a sub-brand called Zan to help blockchain developers build solutions for Web3. While China has taken a strict anti-crypto stance for two years, some tech giants there have taken gradual steps to explore the use cases of blockchain, which is also the underlying technology supporting cryptocurrencies. Zan has a range of blockchain application development products and services to help Web3 developers.
One of the first solutions this brand is bringing to market is a solution that helps Web3 companies that manage or issue Real-World Assets (RWAs) comply with local regulatory requirements.
The product range also includes systems and tools related to electronic know-your-customer (KYC), anti-money laundering and know-your-transaction checks that developers can use for their projects.
Hui Zhang, a person whose previous work history or details of his connection to Ant Group are unclear, has been named CEO of Zan.
“Zan is dedicated to investing in the research and development of Web3 technologies and products, providing more comprehensive and reliable technical services to support the community, and collaborating with our partners to accelerate Web3 developments and innovations. Web3 is a technology sector that offers new opportunities,” Zhang said.
Although this platform was publicly announced today, it has been in the works for quite some time. At the beginning of 2023, Zan was already running its services in the pilot phase. During the Hong Kong Web3 Festival in April this year, Zan was selected for its offerings by HashKey DID, a decentralized Web3 identity data aggregator.
As an independent company, Zan is intended to help the Chinese parent company move directly to the IPO phase.
In 2020, Ant Group missed a big opportunity to launch a $30 billion (around 2,50,546 crore) initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong and Shanghai. At that time, the company was expecting to reach the valuation of $226 billion (approximately Rs. 18,76,195 crore), but the IPO was blocked by Chinese authorities.
