Taobao bans sale of virtual currency

Recently, Taobao released the revised "Taobao Prohibited Goods Management Regulations", which show that "digital products and derivative services such as virtual currencies generated based on blockchain technology" are included in the scope of prohibited products. Previously, Taobao only banned the sale of "Internet virtual currencies such as Bitcoin and Litecoin and related products." However, Yangcheng Evening News reporters searched for the word "virtual currency" and found that there are still merchants who continue to sell products including "virtual currency trading platform", "virtual currency mining machine" and "virtual currency speculation tutorial". The revised prohibition regulations will be implemented on April 17.

New rules for banning the sale of virtual currency

Recently, Taobao has changed its "Taobao Prohibited Goods Management Regulations", in which Article 11 "Virtual Category" is aimed at virtual currency. Reporters noticed that the regulations have expanded from the previous "Bitcoin, Litecoin and other Internet virtual currencies and related commodities" to "digital products such as virtual currencies generated based on blockchain technology and derivative services" and are all included in the scope of banned products.

Taobao stated that the basis for the ban on sales came from the "Notice on Preventing Bitcoin Risks" issued by the People's Bank of China and other five ministries in 2013, and the "Announcement on Preventing Token Issuance and Financing Risks" issued by the People's Bank of China and other seven ministries on September 4, 2017.

Taobao said that this type of digital currency and similar digital products are prone to user speculation and illegal financing risks, and no organization may provide them with trading, exchange, pricing, intermediary, payment and other services. According to the information provided by Taobao, the changed rules will officially take effect on April 17.

Search for "virtual currency" and there are still tutorials for sale

According to Taobao's previous regulations before the change, the sale of virtual currencies including Bitcoin, as well as virtual currency tutorials and strategies such as Bitcoin mining tutorials, and software and hardware including Bitcoin mining machines have been banned.

But yesterday, Yangcheng Evening News reporters searched for the word "virtual currency" on Taobao and found that related search terms such as "virtual currency trading platform", "virtual currency mining machine" and "virtual currency speculation tutorial" popped up. The reporter clicked in and found that some stores were still selling "Bitcoin virtual digital currency investment tutorial" worth 29.9 yuan, and claimed that the main speaker was a veteran in the currency circle and a brick-moving expert. Similarly, another seller who left a phone number and WeChat claimed that "virtual currency wallet development and Ethereum token development can be carried out."

Bitcoin plunges 65% from its peak

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Virtual currencies experienced a "late spring cold snap" in the first quarter. Throughout the first quarter, the international market price (Bitstamp data) plummeted from a high of more than $17,500 in December last year to around $6,000 on April 8, a drop of more than 65%. Especially after March, the price of Bitcoin began to fall below $10,000. As of 18:25 Beijing time on April 11, the price of Bitcoin on Bitstamp was $6,850.25, barely climbing above the $6,800 mark.

On March 28, at the monetary, gold and silver work conference held by the central bank, Fan Yifei, deputy governor of the central bank, once again emphasized that a rectification and cleanup of various types of virtual currencies will be carried out.

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Taobao bans sales of virtual currency

Taobao's specific prohibition on sales includes but is not limited to:

1. Bitcoin, Litecoin, Biocoin, Quarkcoin, Infinitycoin, Cococoin, Pennycoin, PPCoin, NameCoin and other digital currencies;

2. Commodities with the same technical nature and generation mechanism as digital currencies, such as digital pets generated based on blockchain technology;

3. Obtain digital currency tutorials, strategies and software, such as mining tutorials;

4. Derivative services provided for ICO (Initial Coin Offering) and digital currencies, such as technology development, business planning, intermediary, marketing, agency, etc.