(Yicai Global) June 1 -- China’s local governments have eagerly embraced blockchain but projects they have set in motion around the distributed ledger technology are being delayed because of data sharing and leadership issues.

At least 22 Chinese regional administrations are looking to use the much-hyped technology that is the backbone of Bitcoin to verify digital information, according to this year's local government work reports. But the road has not been smooth so far.

The participation of banks, insurers, data carriers, transport operators, and employers is essential in building a reliable platform, but not everyone has been generous with their data, a professional who worked on creating a public services platform in 2017 told Yicai Global.

China lacks a nationwide data protection law so many organizations have no trouble finding excuses not to join in, he said. Some participants in the project he worked on came up with a countless number of reasons why they did not share data, he said.

As he discovered, much also depends on the people involved. Initially, a particular government leader was enthusiastic about using blockchain and the project gained some traction in 2018. But his successor was less excited about the virtues of blockchain, and the whole endeavor was scrapped.

"The success of a blockchain project is largely related to the sustainability of the policy and local government leaders' understanding of blockchain," according to Zhao Yongxin, professor at the Hebei Institute of Finance.

Or as the insider put it: “Enthusiasm and ideas aren’t enough. A sustainable policy is also needed.”

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine