Country overview

China is the biggest retail crypto market in the world, with a population of 1411 mln (1) people. However, mining and crypto exchange are banned in the country and have no crypto regulation.

According to our rating, China is a safe place at a security level. Jurisdiction has 74.2 points (from 100) for safety level in Numbeo crime rating (2). Homicide level (3) is 0,5 per 100,000 inhabitants a year.

Despite new crypto regulations in Hong Kong, mainland China still saves in power ban on crypto activities, which includes crypto payments.

Despite new crypto regulations in Hong Kong, mainland China still saves in the power ban on crypto activities, which includes crypto salaries.

Currently, crypto operations and mining are banned in China. China’s initial step to regulate crypto-assets came in 2013 when the People’s Bank of China prohibited (4) financial institutions from dealing in Bitcoin or other virtual assets. In 2017, the Chinese government banned initial coin offerings and prohibited crypto-asset exchanges from operating in China. According to CNBC (5), this ban was imposed by a joint statement (6) of 7 local regulators, including the People’s Bank of China, China Securities Regulatory Commission, China Banking Regulatory Commission, and China Insurance Regulatory Commission.

This forced many exchanges based in China, including Binance, the world's largest exchange, to relocate.

In 2021, the Chinese government banned mining by NRDC circular (7). According to Reuters, ten local regulators have forbidden (8) crypto trading and exchange activity.

Despite the official crypto ban, according to Yahoo.Finance (9) local courts have provided rulings that legalize crypto status as an official legal property for individuals in some court cases. Moreover, the local tax authority has imposed tax regimes for crypto - so a blanked ban on crypto may be canceled, and new regulations for exchange and mining are on the way.

At the same time, Hong Kong has enabled crypto trading in the form of ETFs. Our overview (10) provides more details about crypto regulation in Hong Kong.

China doesn’t have a clear crypto tax framework, especially given the country's blanket ban on crypto activities. However, in 2023, the local tax authority (11) imposed a 20% tax on crypto transactions. Based on PWC tax summaries (12), China has a 45% PIT and a 25% CIT rate.

1) China. Wiki

2)Crime Index by Country 2023 Mid-Year

3)List of countries by intentional homicide rate

4) China Bans Financial Companies From Bitcoin Transactions. Article

5) China bans companies from raising money through ICOs and asks local regulators to inspect 60 major platforms. Article

6) 中国人民银行 中央网信办 工业和信息化部 工商总局 银监会 证监会 保监会关于防范代币发行融资风险的公告. Article

7) 国家发展改革委等部门关于整治虚拟货币“挖矿”活动的通知. Law

8) China's top regulators ban crypto trading and mining, tumbling bitcoin. Article

9) China court says virtual assets are legally protected as properties. Article

10)Our overview - Hong Kong

11) China’s Crypto Tax Provides Clear Regulatory Frameworks For Investors And Businesses. Article

12)China, People's Republic of. PWC