The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has officially deemed all digital currency activities to be illegal and even vowed to harshly crack down on the crypto market.
The PBOC stated on its website that services offering trading, order matching, token issuance and derivatives for cryptocurrencies are illegal. This extends to overseas crypto exchanges that are offering services to local residents in the country as well. The bank will be investigating the workers at foreign crypto exchanges.
The bank added that it has improved its systems to intensify surveillance of crypto-related transactions and eliminate speculative investing.
To reiterate its past comments when it urged Alipay and other banks to crack down on crypto speculation, financial institutions and nonbank payment institutions are prohibited from offering services for any crypto-related businesses.
This is just another one of its many crusades against cryptocurrencies, as China considers crypto to be synonymous with crime. The central bank forced a Beijing-based company to shut down for reportedly facilitating crypto transactions back in July.
That being said, China is not as far behind when it comes to CBDC (central bank digital currency). In fact, China is leaving many other countries behind in the race towards CBDC, having tested the digital yuan in several regions.
