I noticed something quite interesting about China’s position on cryptocurrencies. During an inter-agency meeting on Friday, Chinese authorities—including the People’s Bank of China, the Ministry of Public Security, and other agencies—reiterated once again that virtual currencies have no legal status as fiat money in the country and that all related activities are considered illegal financial operations.

What stands out is the declared intent to intensify crackdowns on crypto speculation. The authorities emphasized that speculative trading is increasing and brings with it new financial risks. On the issue of stablecoins, then, the People’s Bank expressed specific concerns: according to them, they lack adequate KYC checks and protections against money laundering, which would facilitate illicit cross-border financing and fraud.

But here’s the contradiction I find fascinating: despite this firmly anti-crypto stance, China has re-emerged as the third-largest global hub for bitcoin mining. BTC is currently around $72.97K, and mining remains an activity that continues to thrive in the country.

Meanwhile, the regulatory environment for stablecoins is completely different in the United States, where the climate has become increasingly favorable. Even Hong Kong, which operates under a separate legal jurisdiction, has maintained a pro-crypto industry approach. The Hong Kong government has actively supported the ecosystem, with stablecoins taking center stage during Hong Kong Fintech Week and Finance Secretary Paul Chan inaugurating the Consensus conference.

On another note, the WLFI token of World Liberty Financial has suffered a setback, dropping 6.53% over the last 24 hours after the Trump-linked crypto venture defended a controversial lending strategy on the Dolomite DeFi platform.

So China’s crypto situation remains in this gray area: officially declared crackdowns, but mining activity continuing in parallel. An interesting balance to monitor, especially considering how other countries are taking increasingly open approaches toward the industry.