China’s war on bitcoin just hit a new level with its latest crypto crackdown

China’s war on bitcoin just hit a new level with its latest crypto crackdown

China's central bank said Tuesday it had called for the shutdown of a company that "was suspected of providing software services for virtual currency transactions." , issued by the Beijing office of the People's Bank of China, also warned institutions not to provide other services related to virtual currency, including providing business premises or marketing. Lashing out against digital currencies is nothing new for the authoritarian state. In , the country ordered third-party payment providers to stop using bitcoin. Chinese authorities put a stop to token sales in and pledged to continue to in 2019. But typically, each time Beijing has lashed out at the crypto industry, the sting has worn off and the rules eventually softened. This time, however, appears to be different. , China banned financial institutions and payment companies from providing crypto-related services. , there were of people suspected of using cryptocurrencies in nefarious ways. That same month, on banks and payment businesses to stop providing cryptocurrency services, and Weibo, the Twitter of China, . As of July, half the world's bitcoin miners following Beijing's on bitcoin mining and trading. "China's government is doing everything they can to ensure that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies disappear from the