Chinese State Media Organization Prints Bitcoin Overview Article

A Chinese media agency recently published a detailed article on Bitcoin on the front page of its newspaper on November 11, 2019. This development is in line with China’s latest positive stance towards cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. Some observers, however, believe that the new trend is a build-up to the digital RMB.  

Chinese State Media Publishes Bitcoin Intro

Xinhua News Agency, a Chinese state-owned newspaper, becomes the latest news agency to print a crypto-themed article. Published on its front page, the article titled Bitcoin: The First Successful Application of Blockchain Technology, covered areas such as bitcoin mining, anonymity, the decentralized and immutable nature of blockchain technology, among others.

Translation pic.twitter.com/Db1XgK56Kd

— Matthew Graham (@mattysino) November 11, 2019

An excerpt from the article reads: 

“Bitcoin is the first successful application of blockchain technology. The transaction records of the traditional financial system are kept in the database of the bank center, and the blockchain is the book of Bitcoin. The ownership of bitcoin generated at any time and the transaction record are recorded in the blockchain book. Anyone who downloads the client can receive relevant information.”

Also, the Xinhua bitcoin article erroneously mentioned that the anonymous nature of bitcoin transactions makes it a tool for money laundering and other illegal activities. Bitcoin isn’t anonymous and different jurisdictions mandate that crypto exchanges should be KYC and AML compliant. The regulatory agency in Hong Kong is set to introduce a robust digital currency regulatory framework that would focus on AML, KYC, and custody requirements. 

There has been an increased positive interest surrounding crypto and blockchain technology in China. The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, publicly endorsed distributed ledger technology (DLT). Furthermore, the government stated that it was illegal to refer to blockchain as a “scam”. 

Further actions include the Chinese government passing the “Cryptographic Law” to be implemented in January 2020, and the country’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), stating that blockchain is useful in the mainstream financial industry. 

As reported by BTCManager earlier in November, the Chinese government removed bitcoin mining from the list of industries that would be banned come 2020. 

Even with the supposed positive attitude that the country is adopting towards the dynamic technology, bitcoin trading and ICOs still remain banned in China. Critics and observers alike are watching to see how the cryptocurrency scene in China would develop in the near future.

A Build-up to China’s Digital RMB?

While some stakeholders and the members of the crypto community laud China’s new attitude towards bitcoin and cryptocurrency generally, some commentators under Graham’s tweet believe that the latest trend is a prelude to the coming of a digital RMB. 

According to an earlier report by <i>BTCManager</i>, the country’s apex bank, the PBoC, was spearheading plans to roll out a central bank digital currency (CBDC), with the central bank and commercial banks distributing the digital currency.