Chinese Tech Hub Follows Beijing With Ban on Crypto Promotion

Aug 29, 2018 at 12:30 UTC

A special economic zone in China’s Guangzhou city is following the lead of Beijing’s financial district in banning activities that promote cryptocurrencies.

According to a news report from National Business Daily on Wednesday, the finance department of the Guangzhou Development District issued a notice to local businesses on Aug. 24, prohibiting them from hosting any crypto-related promotions or events.

The move comes just days after the government authority of Beijing’s Chaoyang district issued a similar missive to shopping malls, hotels, restaurants and official buildings, as CoinDesk previously reported.

Citing a similar reason to that offered in Beijing, the Guangzhou agency said the goal of the restriction is to “strengthen the position of Chinese yuan as the legal currency in China and to stabilize the country’s financial system.”

Established by the State Council in the 1980s as one of the country’s first special economic zones, the district was set out to be the hub for boosting economic and technological development in southern China.

While Guangzhou seeks to clamp down further on cryptocurrency, the government of Guangdong province, in which the city is situated, is taking the opposite stance.

Guangdong province published a notice on Tuesday, issued Aug. 14, that ordered municipal and county level governments to speed up the process of rolling out policies to support blockchain startups and accelerate the adoption of applications related to the tech.

China’s State Council, too, demanded that local authorities speed up blockchain technology development in May.

Guangzhou image via Shutterstock

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