JD quietly lays out DeFi by recruiting experts, leveraging Hong Kong's new stablecoin regulations to make a strong push for on-chain payment finance and trillion-level Supply Chain finance scenarios.

China's e-commerce giant JD.com is quietly laying out its plans in the field of Decentralized Finance, recruiting talents with deep expertise in DeFi, involving DEX, lending, derivation, and tokenomics. This move coincides with the implementation of Hong Kong's stablecoin licensing system, paving the way for Compliance issuance of fiat-backed digital money. JD.com has also proposed the concept of "PayFi", aiming to integrate payment with Programmability Financial Service through smart contracts, empowering its trillion-scale Supply Chain to achieve tokenization of real-world assets (RWA) such as accounts receivable and warehouse receipts, as well as efficient on-chain circulation. It adopts a dual-track strategy of "domestic Compliance chain (ZhiZhen Chain) + overseas Web3 innovation", creating differentiation from Ant Group and Tencent's paths, showcasing the ambition of Web2 giants to transition to the on-chain economy.

[JD quietly recruits DeFi experts, new regulations for Hong Kong stablecoins become an opportunity] China's second largest e-commerce platform JD.com (with annual revenue exceeding $150 billion) recently quietly released a recruitment notice seeking DeFi experts proficient in decentralized exchanges (DEX), lending protocols, on-chain derivations, and tokenomics. The timing of this move is noteworthy, coinciding with the official implementation of Hong Kong's "Regulatory Framework for Stablecoin Issuers" on August 1. This new regulation opens a clear path for large enterprises to compliantly issue digital currencies (i.e., stablecoins) pegged to fiat.

[Strongly Promote PayFi Payment Finance, Unlock Trillion-level Supply Chain Tokenization Value] The recruitment information reveals JD's grander vision: to develop "PayFi" (Payment Finance). The PayFi model aims to deeply integrate traditional payment with Programmability and on-chain Financial Service using smart contracts technology. The specific application scenarios hold great potential:

• After the supplier confirms receipt on JD.com, they can instantly obtain on-chain accounts receivable token certificates.
• The token certificate can be staked immediately in DeFi protocols to obtain liquidity, or can be split for small payments.
• The supplier can also directly use this Token to pay for goods upstream. JD plans to tokenize its core assets in its vast Supply Chain ecosystem — including accounts receivable, digital warehouse receipts, logistics orders, etc. — on-chain (i.e., Real World Asset Tokenization/RWA Tokenization). This move is expected to unlock the enormous potential value of its trillion-dollar Supply Chain network and significantly improve on-chain capital circulation efficiency.

[Dual Track Parallel: Domestic Compliance Chain vs Overseas Web3 Innovation] JD's blockchain strategy stands in stark contrast to those of other tech giants in China:

• Onshore: Relying on the "Smart Chain" platform, we continuously delve into regulated industrial blockchain application scenarios, such as product anti-counterfeiting traceability, integration of digital renminbi (e-CNY), etc., to ensure compliance with domestic regulatory frameworks.
• Offshore: Actively embrace Web3, aiming to become a direct participant, including exploring compliant stablecoin issuance, building on-chain DeFi ecosystems, and practicing tokenization in financial services and other cutting-edge fields. This dual-track parallel strategy of "strict compliance domestically + bold innovation overseas" is expected to provide JD with a unique differentiated advantage in the competition of empowering the real economy with blockchain and exploring the next generation of Internet finance.

【Conclusion: E-commerce Giants Accelerate Embrace of On-chain Economy, Dual-track Strategy Faces Challenges and Opportunities】 JD's layout in DeFi signifies the accelerating integration of large Web2 enterprises with the Web3 world. This e-commerce giant is attempting to leverage its vast user base, supply chain network, and capital strength to deeply integrate blockchain finance into its core business operations, exploring the intersection of e-commerce and on-chain economy. Although regulatory compliance hurdles and the cultivation of large-scale user on-chain behavior habits remain significant challenges, if it can successfully implement its dual-track strategy of domestic and international development, JD is expected to gain significant first-mover competitive advantages and innovation dividends in the upcoming on-chain business transformation.