BEIJING. The Central Bank of China has banned any cryptocurrency-related transactions, including payments, trading and advertising. The risks for the stability of the country are too high. China stressed that digital currencies do not have the same weight as other currencies, so they are not considered legal and should not be used on the markets.
The ban does not only affect companies but also individuals and any bitcoin transactions carried out abroad. Exchange services between official currencies and cryptocurrencies and exchange services between different cryptocurrencies, information and analysis on the costs of cryptocurrencies, issuing of tokens and transactions in derivatives linked to cryptocurrencies will also be illegal. A total blockade, in short, that goes in the direction of “resolutely repressing” cryptocurrencies in the name of national security and social stability.
Chinese banks have been banned from handling cryptocurrencies since 2013. In today’s note, the central bank accuses Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies of wreaking havoc in the financial system and also being used for money laundering. “Transactions derived from virtual currencies are all illegal and highly prohibited financial activities,” the People’s Bank of China said on its website. According to the authorities, the promoters of cryptocurrencies say they allow anonymity and flexibility, but in reality they only weaken the control of the Communist Party, as well as favor criminal activities. For this, the People’s Bank of China is developing a digital version of the yuan, the national currency, for virtual transactions, which become traceable and controllable from Beijing.
After the blockade, cryptocurrencies suffered a decline. Bitcoin lost 7.56% to $ 41,387.35. Ether and Litecoin, on the other hand, respectively 10.16% and 11.16%, while Dogecoin fell by 8.70%.