AT THE 18TH COLLECTIVE STUDY SESSION of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee on Thursday, General Secretary Xi Jinping identified blockchain as "a crucial breakthrough point for the indigenous innovation of core technologies". The top leader's forward-looking approach has made blockchain the focus of financial capital, the real economy and public opinion. People's Daily comments:

Cutting-edge technologies have always been an important content in the collective study sessions of the Political Bureau, from cyber power to big data, from media integration to blockchain. Learning forefront technological changes at such sessions reflects the forward-looking judgment of China's leaders and their sharp insight into emerging trends and their capability to lead the country's industrial reform and economic transformation.

Blockchain involves many challenges, but from an applied point of view, it goes beyond specific technical problems, and uses fundamental principles to think about complex phenomena. To put it simply, blockchain is a distributed shared ledger and database that is decentralized, falsification-free and traceable, thus guaranteeing its "honesty" and laying a foundation for the creation of trust.

As long as the authenticity of information and data on blockchain are ensured, blockchain can solve the "storage" and "verification" problems of information. The distribution features of blockchain mean it can break down "data barriers" between departments and realize information and data sharing.

Besides, blockchain can form a "consensus mechanism" that can solve the problem of information asymmetry, helping enhance trust as the cornerstone of the market economy. At the same time, blockchain can boost the trust needed for cooperation between multiple subjects.

But we should hold a rational approach to its development. Blockchain technologies are accompanied by cryptocurrency, although innovation of blockchain technologies is not equal to virtual currency speculation, we should take precautionary measures to prevent the prevalence of such kind of speculation. This means we should make further improvements in terms of safety, standards and regulation.

Blockchain greatly expands the breadth and depth of human trust and cooperation. However, it should not be the next-generation internet technology only, but become a next-generation cooperation mechanism and organizational form.