Ant Group, the financial technology subsidiary of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABY) retained its place as the largest holder of blockchain patents in 2020, according to a report by International Asset Management citing data from Clarivate’s Derwent World Patents Index or DWPI.
What happened: Research published by IAM showed that Ant Group retains its first place on the index, which has filed composite patents for quantity and quality, CoinDesk first reported. The rankings are dominated by Chinese companies, giving the lead in terms of blockchain patent file volume.
Ant Group filed 586 patents in 2020, representing a 33% decrease from the 880 patents it filed in the previous year. The company holds 2,298 blockchain patents.
Shenzhen-based conglomerate Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China Ltd. (OTC: PNGAY) filed 1,215 patents in 2020 to win second place Tencent Holdings Limited (OTC: TCEHY).
International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) was the only non-Chinese company in the top ten, finishing fourth in the number of blockchain patents last year with 647 files. Nevertheless, the DWPI score statistics put IBM in second place behind Ant Group.
Why it matters: Chinese companies continue to expand their research on blockchain technology, which is used in financial technology, supply chain management and the Internet of Things or IoT, among others.
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for more research and innovation in blockchain technology in 2019. Some of the largest technology companies in China, including Ant Group, Tencent and Baidu Inc.. (NASDAQ: BIDU) has representation in the country’s national blockchain committee.
See also: Jack Ma’s Ant Pledges To Go Carbon Neutral By 2030
Ant Group has been investing significantly in the research and development of blockchain technologies since 2015. In July last year, Ant Group reveal AntChain, a new technology brand for the company’s blockchain-based solutions.
Price action: Alibaba Group’s shares closed nearly 0.7% lower at $ 230.28 on Monday and fell further 0.2% in the after-hours session.
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