Chinese state media flags volatility, money laundering as risks in metaverse land sales
- People’s Daily said property sales in the metaverse resembled ‘product financialisation’ and carried risks of volatility, fraud and money laundering
- Some winners of a virtual real estate lottery have listed their property on e-commerce platforms, with asking prices reaching tens of thousands of yuan
The Chinese Communist Party’s mouthpiece newspaper has issued a fresh warning about the metaverse, this time targeting speculators who engage in virtual property sales, saying they risk “getting burnt”.
In a commentary published on Thursday, the People’s Daily said property sales in the metaverse resembled “product financialisation” and carried risks of volatility, fraud, illegal fundraising and money laundering.
The article noted that China has not provided clarity on regulations or the legal nature of NFTs, and that transactions made with other digital assets are not supported by laws in China or other countries.
“Regulation should be encouraged to come before innovation,” the article said. “Novel things are inevitably accompanied by new risks … the advanced development of novelties should not be without boundaries or order, and it requires tolerance but not indulgence.”
It also said that because the metaverse was still in its early stages, people should wait for it to develop further to avoid getting “burnt”.