Law enforcement from China have arrested nearly 1,100 individuals on charges of crypto money laundering. This move is a clear reminder that China works towards a society where crypto has a limited or non-existent presence.
China Works Against a Crypto Society
In the process of arresting the individuals, China states that it caught over 170 criminal gangs known for committing financial crimes. The individuals in question have laundered the crypto via fraudulent SIM cards and illicit bank accounts. The arrests were made by agents of China’s Ministry of Public Security.
The organization proclaimed in a statement:
“In order to avoid the investigation and crackdown, fraudsters turned to use virtual currency to transfer the funds involved. Driven by illegal interests, some criminals actively provide services to fraud gangs, helping scam gangs transfer and launder money by purchasing and exchanging virtual currencies and become criminal accomplices.”
The statement continues saying:
“After investigation, such illegal criminal gangs usually organize personnel to register on various virtual currency trading platforms with personal bank cards and information, purchase and exchange virtual currencies in accordance with the requirements of fraud gangs and become ‘coin farmers’ who help them launder money. After completing the money laundering process, coin farmers can obtain ‘commissions’ ranging from 1.5 percent to about five percent. The high illegal income attracts many people to participate, causing serious social harm.”
China Battles Crypto Money Laundering
In 2020, China has announced that it has been increasing its efforts to end fraud-based criminal activities. It led to the establishment of a division known as Operation Card Breaking. It has led to the arrests of over 310,000 individuals and the end of nearly 15,000 criminal groups.
Up until now, China has always been up and down when it comes to cryptocurrency. The country banned both initial coin offerings and digital exchanges four years ago. Lately, lawmakers announced that they will take a stronger stance on bitcoin and cryptocurrency mining and all related digital currency and blockchain operations. Regulators that are working with the People’s Bank of China stated:
“Prices of cryptocurrency have skyrocketed and plummeted recently, and speculative trading has bounced back. This seriously harms the safety of people’s property and disturbs normal economic and financial orders.”
Everyone is not Glad
So far, China has incurred a heavy backlash for its decision to end the presence of digital currencies within its borders. Canaan Creative is stationed in China, and released a statement saying that the country was on the wrong path as rescinding mining operations will ultimately decrease the job prospects, hurt the nation’s economy, and also put China in a low position on the competitive ladder.
Furthermore, Bitcoin suffered another enormous price drop after the news.
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