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The View | Metaverse’s NFT- and cryptocurrency-fuelled boom a gold mine for banking and finance sector
- Wherever there are exchanges of goods, even in virtual spaces, there will be opportunities for banking, finance and insurance firms
- The metaverse needs frameworks and guidelines to satisfy banking and financial demands, something Hong Kong can help shape as a leading financial centre
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The metaverse is poised to be the next evolution of the internet. Much of the current excitement has been about immersive 3D gaming, social networking, shopping and virtual meetings using technologies such as virtual and augmented reality.
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But what makes the metaverse interesting for the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector is that these modern virtual worlds are built on top of blockchains, cryptocurrencies and NFTs, offering many exciting new opportunities.
Many probably first heard of the metaverse when Mark Zuckerberg announced that Facebook was being renamed Meta. Suddenly, the metaverse got real.
Facebook is not the only company working on expanding into the metaverse. For example, last month Microsoft announced it would acquire Activision Blizzard, a leading video game publisher, to strengthen its presence in the metaverse.
What is the metaverse? It is a network of highly immersive 3D virtual worlds where people navigate and interact with each other via their avatars. Not only can you play games, you can also own land, build houses, buy wearables and goods, watch concerts and even do work.
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Tech companies in China chase metaverse opportunities in immersive virtual online world
Tech companies in China chase metaverse opportunities in immersive virtual online world
The metaverse has gained traction during the pandemic, when much of what we do has become virtual. However, many of the fundamental ideas behind the metaverse are not new.
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