China’s Enlist Its 'Great Firewall' To Block Crypto Websites

Bitcoin (BTC) hit a new low on Monday( 5th February 2018) dropping below $7,000 since the mid of November 2017. The latest cryptocurrency market dip has possibly been caused by the recent news from China that all foreign cryptocurrency exchanges are to be banned by the People’s Bank of China (PBoC). China will allegedly block anybody in the country from accessing websites that provide cryptocurrency trading services or initial coin offerings (ICOs). Ads related to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have also been wiped away from social media websites and search engines in the country. The Government of China have already banned ICOs and close down local exchanges, but that didn’t resolve the problem of citizens accessing foreign services inside the nation. According to local media, China is going to block access to local and overseas services to stop financial risk. China has a long tradition of blocking unnecessary foreign websites by using the so-called Great Firewall of China. An article published on Sunday night by the People’s Bank of China-affiliated Financial News stated that overseas transactions and regulatory evasion have resumed. South China Morning post also cited a news regarding Cryptocurrency transactions “Risks are still there, fuelled by the illegal issuance, and even fraud and pyramid selling.” The central bank allegedly stated that it would “tighten regulations” on the citizen of China who all are involved in overseas cryptocurrency transactions and ICOs. According to SCMP, cryptocurrency advertisements have now gone from the Baidu search engine and the social media platform Weibo much as recently happened with Facebook. The most recent Chinese news comes at a wobbling point of Bitcoin. Having slipped below the $8,000 mark on Friday, Bitcoin regained its position to some extent before declining all over again through Sunday and Monday. The price at the time of writing is $6550.10 Apart from regulatory moves around the world, the most recent development spooking the marketplace is the decision taken by major U.S. banks to stop the bitcoin purchasing through credit cards.