China’s central bank intensifies cryptocurrency crackdown as it targets offshore exchanges with ties to mainland
- The PBOC warned on Friday that anyone involved in providing support to an offshore exchange could come under investigation
- Any foreign digital currency exchange that provides services to Chinese citizens through the internet is engaging in illegal financial activities, it said
China’s central bank has intensified its crackdown on cryptocurrency activities, warning on Friday that anyone involved in providing support to an offshore exchange could come under investigation.
It is in one of the country’s most explicit warnings to date targeting foreign platforms.
Any foreign crypto exchange that provides services to Chinese citizens through the internet is engaging in illegal financial activities, it said. But the central bank on Friday also singled out any individuals or entities providing supporting functions to offshore platforms as also being liable.
“Any legal persons, unincorporated organisations, individuals who provide sales and marketing, payment settlement, technical support, who knowingly or should know that they are engaged in virtual currency related business, will be investigated in accordance with the law,” the People’s Bank of China said in a notification addressed to all local governments and autonomous regions.