Chinese police confiscate $160 million worth of crypto; bolsters concern for 58 million users
|- China announces the first crypto asset confiscation via court ruling on Tuesday, seizing nearly $160 million worth of crypto from a gambling platform.
- China still ranks as the second biggest crypto user nation, with 58 million users.
- The Chinese government recently launched its government-backed Metaverse platform but failed to ease policies toward crypto.
China began its assault on crypto two years ago and is continuing it to date, except this particular time, they did it more legally. Regardless, the anti-crypto stance held by the country is certainly a matter of concern for its many million users.
China goes after crypto again
Chinese police recently announced the country's first case of confiscation of cryptocurrency through a court ruling. Per the announcement, nearly $160 million worth of digital assets were seized by the authorities. The police stated,
"Preliminary investigation of this online gambling case, the amount involved in the case reached 4000 billion, there were more than 5 people involved, the server was set up overseas, the method of fund laundering used the most difficult virtual currency, and the main backbone of the case may be overseas. (sic)
Following the report, Chen Shi, Deputy Mayor of Jingmen City and Director of the Public Security Bureau, ordered the formation of a special case team.
This instance furthered the anti-crypto stance that China has been famous for since 2021. Despite the blanket ban on crypto and digital assets, the country still ranks as the second largest crypto asset user nation with over 58 million crypto users, behind India's 103 million.
China crypto users
Interestingly, even though China stands against crypto and the anonymity that comes with it, it certainly endorses the technology behind it. China is currently one of the world's biggest use case examples of Central Bank Digital Currency, with its Digital Yuan (e-CNY) being used and promoted by the government vehemently.
In fact, recently, the country also launched its own government-backed Metaverse platform called the "China Metaverse Technology and Application Innovation Platform. However, the exact purpose of the Metaverse remains unknown.
Read more - Can China's recent crypto optimism trigger a bull run in Bitcoin price?
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