By
Steve Muchoki
November 28th, 2023
The regulatory bodies came together to reiterate the crypto ban amid the high volatility of crypto resulting in losses among citizens.
Three regulatory bodies in China have released a report to bolster the crypto ban on financial institutions. The associations, including the National Internet Finance Association of China, the China Banking Association, and the Payment and Clearing Association of China, released a report on the crypto ban on the 18th of May. The report reinforces the China crypto ban that was formerly introduced in 2013 and then 2017.
In 2013, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the China Banking Regulatory Commission, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and the China Insurance Regulatory Commission came together to issue a “Notice on preventing Bitcoin risks.”
Then in 2017, China permanently shut down its local crypto exchanges. About 2 years later, the PBoC revealed plans to block access to all domestic and foreign crypto exchanges and ICO websites. At the time, the central bank’s move was aiming to limit crypto trading on foreign exchanges.
Regulators on China Crypto Ban
According to the new report, the regulatory bodies came together to reiterate the crypto ban amid the high volatility of crypto resulting in losses among citizens. The report noted that the volatility has “damaged the normal economic and financial orders.”
Notably, Bitcoin has recorded huge losses over the past week and is currently down 10.41%. The king coin has traded as low as $38,717 in the last 24 hours and now stands around $40,000. BTC has shed nearly 29% in the last 7 days.
Lately, most major cryptocurrencies have been seeing steady declines. At press time, CoinMarketCap data shows that all the top 10 cryptocurrencies are “on red.”
In the report, the organization stated that crypto is not issued by a monetary authority and has no monetary properties. Specifically, the reports said that no financial or payment institution must offer crypto registration, trading, clearing, and settlement in China.
Additionally, the industry bodies stressed that both financial and payment institutions should continue to monitor crypto transactions. In case of violations of the crypto regulations, they must report to the proper authority. Also, the institutions must terminate any suspected crypto transactions.
Concerned about creating awareness on risks related to crypto, the regulators wrote:
“…actively use multi-channel and diversified access methods to strengthen customer publicity and warning education, and take the initiative to make warnings about risks related to virtual currencies.”
The report highlighted the risks associated with crypto and said it has “no real value support.” The regulators further warned that people should avoid using their personal accounts for crypto transactions to prevent illegal use and personal information leakage.
As for member units that violate the regulatory rules, the associations wrote that violators would face severe punishments. These punishments include industry notifications, suspension of membership rights as well as cancellation of membership.
