By Bob Murray*
(FPRI) — Global information networks are undergoing unprecedented innovation, driven in large part by the emergence of disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, the internet of things, and 5G. Unfortunately for the United States, two other critical, but underappreciated, components of tomorrow’s internet—blockchain and digital currency—are at risk of being controlled largely outside of the West’s influence. Over the past year, the People’s Republic of China has positioned itself to become the global leader in these closely intertwined, linchpin technologies that will be fundamental to tomorrow’s financial and information infrastructures.
Since late 2019, Beijing’s senior leadership has promoted the advancement of blockchain and digital currency in China, and the government has been moving aggressively to make its vision a reality. In October 2019, a call by General Secretary Xi Jinping for intensified blockchain research triggered a 30% surge in the price of bitcoin, which is based on blockchain technology’s original concept.
Several months later, the Chinese government launched two major initiatives: the Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) and the digital yuan. The BSN will, in part, support the global adoption and distribution of the digital yuan, and together, they could centralize financial network infrastructures within China’s technological ecosystem. U.S. soft power has long benefitted from its dominance of the world’s financial and technological infrastructure, and a successful BSN could threaten U.S. dominance in these areas.
China’s Blockchain Internet
The BSN is an effort to c ..
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