• Alibaba, the e-commerce giant, has launched an NFT marketplace on its auction platform, according to SCMP.
• A number of NFTs have already been listed on the Chinese platform, although bidding will not begin until September.
• Despite Beijing's crackdown on cryptocurrencies, NFTs have been slowly gaining traction in China.

The South China Morning Post reported Tuesday that Alibaba Group, a Chinese e-commerce heavyweight, has opened a marketplace for selling non-fungible tokens on its auction platform.

The business wants artists, musicians, writers, and game developers to sell NFTs of their work on the "Blockchain Digital Copyright and Asset-Trade" marketplace, according to the report from SCMP, which is owned by Alibaba.

Creators have already posted a number of NFTs on the service. They'll be auctioned off next month, with a starting offer of 100 yuan ($15). Bidders must pay a deposit of 500 yuan ($77) to participate.

NFTs are blockchain-based digital tokens that include photos, movies, sound snippets, and certificates. Ownership is recorded on the ledgers that the tokens are created on, which is important since while anybody can view an NFT, only one person can own it. As a result, they are frequently sought after by collectors.

After a dip in demand in the early summer, digital tokens have made a comeback. In recent weeks, trading volumes on the NFT platform OpenSea have increased dramatically, as more tokens are sold and their value rises.

Items sold on Alibaba Auction include a painting of a local Sichuan monument, as well as art based on major properties such as "Star Wars," the video game "Wasteland 2," and "Grand Theft Auto", according to SCMP journalist Josh Ye. He shared screenshots of the marketplace's NFTs on Twitter.

"We're not sure if these were ever legally licenced," Ye explained.

The New Copyright Blockchain, which is controlled by the Sichuan Blockchain Association Copyright Committee, will be used to create the NFTs. Bit Universe, an app that is part of the Chinese messaging and social media platform WeChat, can be used to store and view them.

Even as Beijing tightens down on bitcoin products and mining, NFTs are quietly gaining acceptance in China. The Chinese government appears to be increasingly open to blockchain products, with the SCMP reporting in June that China intends to include blockchain technology into its growth and economic objectives.

This summer, Ant Group, an Alibaba-affiliated financial services provider, and SCMP both started NFT projects. Tencent, a Chinese entertainment company, also entered the NFT realm earlier this month with its own token-trading platform, where it sold audio samples from a popular discussion show.