The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China’s top economic policy agency under the State Council, recently issued a press release, which requested local governments to punish virtual currency mining activities and to investigate the mining activities that involve state-owned entities.
In late September, NDRC and other cabinet agencies issued a notice on regulating virtual currency mining. Virtual currency mining projects were forbidden from participating in the electricity market, and the projects that were already in the electricity market were to withdraw.
In July, China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), issued a “Risk Alert on Preventing Virtual Currency Transactions.” The notice warned that institutions should not provide business venues, commercial exhibitions, marketing, promotion, payment and other services for virtual currency-related activities. Financial institutions were not to provide virtual currency-related services directly or indirectly to customers.
China is a major cryptocurrency mining country. About 70 percent of the world’s bitcoin mining takes place in China. Some of these “miners” had already considered leaving after the authorities showed their determination to eliminate virtual currency mining.
Source: Central News Agency, November 13, 2021
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