People's Bank of China Intensifies Cryptocurrency Regulations, Explicitly Bans RWA Tokenization and Yuan-Denominated Stablecoins

On February 6, the People's Bank of China, in conjunction with eight government bodies including the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Public Security, the Securities Regulatory Commission, and the Foreign Exchange Administration, announced enhanced regulations on cryptocurrencies and Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization.

They pointed out that speculative activities related to cryptocurrencies and RWA tokenization are disrupting economic and financial order and threatening the financial security of the citizens.

The new directive reiterates that cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether (USDT) do not hold the same legal status as fiat currencies and should not be circulated as currency in the market. It also addressed the exchange of fiat currencies with cryptocurrencies, exchanges between different cryptocurrencies, and transactions involving central counterparties...