China has had a rocky relationship with the world’s dominant digital asset over the past few years. While there have been no direct signals from the ruling party in the PRC, the people are still hungry for cryptocurrencies and there could be a glimmer of hope of a warming towards Bitcoin and its brethren.
Bank of China Posts Bitcoin Info
According to a recent Forbes article the state owned Bank of China has posted a pro-Bitcoin infographic on its website. The world’s fourth largest bank by assets appears to be warming to cryptocurrencies after a Chinese court ruled that Bitcoin should be considered digital property, further legitimizing the asset in the totalitarian nation.
The info sheet explains Bitcoin’s history, how digital currencies work, why the prices are increasing and how it is considered a store of value. This is a complete turnaround from the banking industry which has been traditionally anti-crypto.
The report added that the sentiment shift has been celebrated by the crypto community in the hope of further easing of restrictions. Despite a ban on exchanges and trading by the state, Bitcoin is still wildly popular amongst the people.
Technically Bitcoin is ‘legal’ in China though the actual rules are a grey area. Any change is likely to happen from the ground up with local authorities taking action before any major legal changes are made by the state.
People Still Hungry For BTC
President of the Bitcoin Association of Hong Kong Leo Wheese stated that the government monitors all transactions on Chinese payment platforms WeChat Pay and AliPay and there are limits on capital outflow. He added that Chinese people have largely been deprived of the opportunity to invest their savings as property markets are deflated, the stock market is often viewed as a scam, and banks offer few investment products.
Bitcoin has become the go to choice for investing and trading and peer to peer platforms and chat groups are still in operation despite Beijing’s efforts to quash them. The authoritarian regime has realized that it cannot shut Bitcoin down; there is no central authority to target. For the people, it provides an efficient way of moving money around beyond the snooping eyes of the state.
A major bank acknowledging Bitcoin, and even providing information on it, may be the first step forward in a possible warming to the asset on a wider scale. It was reported earlier this month that the People’s Bank of China has started researching its own cryptocurrency as fears mount over Facebook’s dominance should Libra ever get off the ground.