Cryptocurrency-Related Weibo Accounts Blocked by China Amid Crackdown on Bitcoin Trading, Mining

More actions are expected, including linking illegal cryptocurency activities more directly with China’s criminal law.

By Reuters | Updated: 7 June 2021 11:05 IST

Cryptocurrency-Related Weibo Accounts Blocked by China Amid Crackdown on Bitcoin Trading, Mining

The Weibo freeze comes as Chinese media have stepped up reporting against crypto trading

Highlights

Access to several crypto-related Weibo accounts was denied
"It's a Judgment Day for crypto KOL", wrote a Weibo bitcoin commentator
China's central bank is accelerating testing of its own digital currency

A slew of crypto-related accounts in China's Twitter-like Weibo platform were blocked over the weekend, as Beijing stepped up a crackdown on Bitcoin trading and mining.

More actions are expected, including linking illegal crypto activities in China more directly with the country's criminal law, according to analysts and a financial regulator.

Last month, China's State Council, or cabinet, vowed to crack down on Bitcoin mining and trading, escalating a campaign against cryptocurrencies days after three industry bodies banned crypto-related financial and payment services.

Samsung Wins Patent for a Tri-Fold Smartphone With Specialised Barrier Layer for Improved Durability

Over the weekend, access to several of widely followed crypto-related Weibo accounts was denied, with a message saying each account "violates laws and rules."

"It's a Judgment Day for crypto KOL", wrote a Weibo Bitcoin commentator, or key opinion leader (KOL), who calls herself "Woman Dr. Bitcoin mini." Her main account was also blocked on Saturday.

"The government makes it clear that no Chinese version of Elon Musk can exist in the Chinese crypto market," said NYU Law School adjunct professor Winston Ma, referring to the Tesla founder and cryptocurrency enthusiast.

Elon Musk Targeted by Anonymous Hacker Group: Report

Ma, author of the book "The Digital War", also expects China's supreme court to publish a judicial interpretation soon that may link crypto mining and trading businesses with China's body of criminal law.

The view was echoed by a financial regulator, who said that such an interpretation would address the legal ambiguity that has failed to clearly identify Bitcoin trading businesses as "illegal operations". All the rules against cryptocurrencies so far in China have been published by administrative bodies.

The Weibo freeze comes as Chinese media have stepped up reporting against crypto trading.

Bitcoin Wallet From Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey's Square May Be Coming Soon

The official Xinhua News Agency has published articles that exposed a series of crypto-related scams. State broadcaster CCTV has said cryptocurrency is a lightly regulated asset often used in black market trade, money laundering, arms smuggling, gambling and drug dealings.

The stepped-up crackdown also comes as China's central bank is accelerating testing of its own digital currency.

Interested in cryptocurrency? We discuss all things crypto with WazirX CEO Nischal Shetty and WeekendInvesting founder Alok Jain on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.

Cryptocurrency Prices across Indian exchanges

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.