Popular Chinese Messaging App WeChat Shuts Down Its 3rd-Party Blockchain App

If you haven’t heard about WeChat, the best way to describe it is as the most popular Chinese Super App developed by a company named Tencent. Similar to WhatsApp and other messaging apps, WeChat offers advanced chat functionalities and options. The company, on the other hand, offers multiple products in the messaging, social networking and payments industry.

As of recently, Tencent has blocked its third-party Blockchain app that was integrated into WeChat. With more than 1 billion active users worldwide, WeChat has support for ‘mini-programs’ where developers can create apps to run within the messaging app. The company here suspended Xiao Xieyi which was the first blockchain mini-program available on the platform.

Basically, the main functionalities of Xiao Xieyi allowed users to create encryption and create contracts on the Ethereum Blockchain without having to leave the app. The mini-program was blocked by Tencent in just one day after it was launched.

The mini-program was developed by the Beijing based blockchain company named Niuco Box. With it, users would be able to create contracts on the blockchain for a flat fee of 3RMB (equivalent to $0.50) which would be used to pay the miners writing the contract on the blockchain.

There was an official statement by WeChat on the situation. They said:

“Xiao Xieyi has been suspended due to violation of the service. We apologize, the content of the program has been suspended due to the fact that the content is not authorized on the platform.”

Meanwhile, China is still confident towards banning cryptocurrencies, trade exchanges and ICOs. The country took a hard stance this year – however, a $1.6 billion fund was created to support local blockchain startups with the help of the government.