Noticed that China's cryptocurrency regulation has taken another step upward. The central bank recently, in conjunction with eight departments including the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Financial Stability Bureau, and the China Securities Regulatory Commission, issued a new virtual currency risk prevention notice. This time, the efforts are indeed worth paying attention to.

What is the core change? First, the notice clearly states that virtual currencies do not have the status of legal tender. Bitcoin, Ethereum, USDT—although they use encryption technology and decentralized ledgers—cannot be used as currency in market circulation. More importantly, all activities related to virtual currencies—including fiat currency exchange, virtual currency trading, token financing, providing pricing services, and so on—are classified as illegal financial activities and are strictly prohibited.

This is not the most severe part. The notice specifically targets the recently popular RWA tokenization with special regulations. If you conduct RWA tokenization or provide related services within China, you are suspected of illegal issuance of tokens, unauthorized public issuance of securities, illegal fundraising, and other serious crimes. Overseas institutions are also prohibited from providing RWA services within the country. The only exception is projects approved by the relevant regulatory authorities and relying on specific financial infrastructure.

Regarding the RMB stablecoin, the notice also clarifies: without approval, no organization or individual is allowed to issue RMB-pegged stablecoins abroad. This directly cuts off many project possibilities.

Enforcement is also very strict. Authorities will establish a cross-departmental joint prevention mechanism. Financial institutions and payment institutions are explicitly prohibited from opening accounts, transferring, or clearing virtual currency businesses, and are also banned from providing custody services for RWA-related products. When registering a company, terms like "virtual currency," "stablecoin," or "RWA" cannot appear in the name or scope of business.

Additionally, mining operations are also within the scope of rectification. Existing mining projects must be thoroughly investigated and shut down; new ones are strictly forbidden. mining hardware manufacturers are also not allowed to provide sales services within the country.

Honestly, with this combination of measures, China's policy environment for cryptocurrencies has become very clear. The consequences of violating regulations are also severe—beyond civil liabilities, suspected crimes will be transferred to judicial authorities. For anyone wanting to operate in this field, this notice is essentially a clear ban. Market reactions to such policies are usually quite sensitive, and further chain reactions may follow.