Assessing China’s latest efforts to ‘promptly clean up and rectify’ crypto-entities

China’s war on crypto seems to be far from over after the People’s Bank of China decided to embark on a campaign to “promptly clean up and rectify” forex and cryptocurrency trading companies for illegally providing crypto-trading assets.

Earlier today, the state-owned Shanghai Securities Journal reported that 11 companies will be “rectified,” or forced to fall in line with regulations as they have been accused of engaging in illegal crypto-token activities.

The report claimed that a “well-known domestic financial website” has been identified by the bank for illegally providing foreign exchange cash deposit transactions. Additionally, eight other companies are being investigated by the bank under suspicion of online foreign currency speculation and cross-border stock trading violations.

The bank’s measures to help consumers comply with financial regulations more robustly also include the introduction of a pilot program. This will offer “targeted education” for financial consumers. This will reportedly establish individual plans for risk prevention and financial education.

Earlier in June, the PBoC had ordered

the likes of Alipay to not provide services linked to the trading of virtual currencies. Additionally, they were also ordered to cut off payment channels for crypto-exchanges and over-the-counter platforms.

At the time, the bank had said that cryptocurrencies “disrupt financial order and also breed risks of criminal activities like illegal cross-border asset transfers and money laundering.”

Following the same, the Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) also affirmed its ban on crypto-transactions. In fact, it threatened retaliation if such behaviors were detected. These steps follow a wider crackdown by the Chinese government on the trading and mining of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.