More Than 100 Offshore Cryptocurrency Exchanges Blocked In China. The Shanghai Securities News is reporting that 124 websites operated by cryptocurrency exchanges outside of China are being blocked in that country. Authorities are expected to monitor sites that offer cryptocurrency services as well as initial coin offerings.
The Chinese government is also aiming to ban payments from various cryptocurrency-related entities. These include payments from those who are operating with bitcoin functions but are outside of China.
The blockage is being supported by the Leading Group of Internet Financial Risks Remediation and with the support from the central bank, the People’s Bank of China. The development is one of the largest such moves in the country regarding the use of crypto currencies.
The efforts are being produced to control cryptocurrency transactions as there are ongoing concerns in the industry relating to the stability of digital currencies. There are concerns that many markets might try to influence them, thus making it easier for people to potentially lose funds or get into improper investments.
The move is a sign that China is looking to focus more on building currency-related functions from within and is trying to avoid the influences of other countries. The equivalent of about $3 billion has been spent within the industry by the Chinese government in recent time. Part of this was to help fund blockchain-related projects throughout the country. It is uncertain as to what specific types of projects are being supported by the government and how those plans are being handled in any situation.
The move comes amid many other developments to control how cryptocurrencies are being used throughout China. Recently, multiple blockchain-related news outlets were closed down by government censors. These include some outlets that have raised millions of dollars in capital. Some hotels, buildings, and other spaces around Beijing have also been told to no longer serve clients associated with cryptocurrency-related businesses or organizations.
The country has been cracking down on many currency-related functions over the past year. Regulators in the country have been active since September of last year over getting the industry under control. ICOs have been banned in the country as they are seen as illegal fundraising activities.
Many of the top cryptocurrency exchanges around the world have also been blocked from use in China. Among the more prominent ones that are blocked include Bitnance and Huobi.
The effects have caused some significant changes in how the bitcoin is traded among other currencies. The bitcoin-yuan pair was once the top-traded currency pair with regards to how cryptocurrencies are traded on the market. Today, that pair only makes up about five percent of the total amount of trades being made in the field while other currencies are growing.
The moves are considered to be key parts of why the currency industry is not growing as much as people might have thought it could. Bitcoin in particular has been struggling to try and get back to being over the $10,000 mark, a point that the currency has not experienced in months as the currency aims to move ahead.
