shenzhen

State-Backed Agricultural Bank of China Launches the First Digital Yuan ATMs

12/01/2021 by Idelto Editor

The Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), one of China’s “big four” banks, is embarking on a pilot program to enable the first digital yuan ATMs. The banking institution deployed the first machines in selected branches in Shenzhen.

ATMs Will Work With a Smartphone App

According to SZ News, the program is part of the ongoing second digital yuan trial, consisting of a giveaway of 200 yuan ($31) to 100,000 residents.

The ATMs enable the possibility to deposit and withdrawal the digital yuan via a smartphone app. The pilot program’s mobile app allows customers to convert cash and savings to and from the token.

As the digital yuan pilot programs keep underway across the country, it’s not surprising that the ABC is testing the digital yuan ATMs. In fact, the bank is a partner of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC).

Zou Hua, manager of the bank’s Digital Yuan Innovation Lab, commented on the ATMs infrastructure’s deployment across Shenzhen:

Agricultural Bank has taken the lead in launching the ATM cash deposit and withdrawal function in the industry to guide Shenzhen residents to adapt to the digitization of cash and explore service transformation.

Shenzhen’s Interest in the Digital Yuan High, Says Expert

Moreover, local experts are reporting positive progress from the digital yuan tests in the city. A comment from Song Qinghuim, a local economist quoted by SZ News, reads as follow:

The third station of the digital RMB pilot program returned to Shenzhen again, indicating that the market has recognized the city. Compared with the first pilot, there have been many changes, which indicates that the digital RMB project is progressing steadily.

The Shenzhen authorities and the PBoC are also preparing the ground to launch another $3 million digital yuan giveaway. They expect to make it possible before the Lunar New Year holidays (mid-February).

Recently, the People’s Bank of China approved a physical card-wallet pilot to test its digital yuan. Coffee shop staff in a Shanghai-based university hospital was chosen as participants in the pilot.

What do you think about the new digital yuan ATMs? Let us know in the comments section below.

Chinese Regulators Question 8 Crypto Companies in Shenzhen

20/12/2019 by Idelto Editor

Authorities in Shenzhen have started pressuring crypto businesses operating in China’s tech capital. Eight companies, two suspected operators of trading platforms, and six entities allegedly associated with coin offerings, have been placed under inquiry, Chinese media revealed, with authorities reportedly questioning their representatives at a meeting hosted by Shenzhen Financial Regulatory Bureau.

Also read: Crypto Employees in China Work From Home to Avoid Government Pressure

Exchanges and ICOs Under Inquiry

Shortly after embracing blockchain, the Chinese government moved to demonstrate it hasn’t changed its negative stance on cryptocurrencies, trading venues and initial coin offerings (ICOs). For example, the Shanghai branch of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) announced last month the strengthening of “supervision and control to crack down on virtual currency transactions.” A study led by the central bank concluded that only 4,000 out of 28,000 blockchain firms are actually working with blockchain technology. The “Bluebook on Blockchain” report claims that as many as 25,000 entities have attempted to issue tokens.

After investigations into the local cryptocurrency market were initially conducted in the financial hub Shanghai and the capital Beijing, China’s most innovative and tech-oriented city also issued a warning against crypto business in its area. Soon after that, the Shenzhen Financial Regulatory Bureau revealed that law enforcement had identified 39 enterprises suspected of illegal activities related to cryptocurrencies. The local financial regulator announced that a cleanup in the sector was about to start in the near future.

Eight of these companies were recently placed under inquiry, the 8BTC crypto outlet reported, during a “rectification meeting” held by the bureau this past Wednesday, Dec. 18, with the participation of 10 other regulatory bodies. According to the publication, two of the entities are believed to be involved in providing crypto trading services, while the other six are said to be linked to the ICOs of a number of tokens such as KAN, VSC, HOB, BST, and MCC. The regulators said they have conducted both online and offline investigations. Commenting on the case, a representative of the bureau stated:

That doesn’t mean that the companies that have not been inquired have no problem, and that those that have been questioned today at the meeting have troubles.

Crackdown on Crypto Escalates

A source at one of the investigated enterprises shared that regulators wanted to learn details about the company’s current situation and the scope of its business operations. They also reiterated that Chinese companies should not be engaged in token sales and other crypto-related financing. The news about the Shenzhen crackdown coincided with a new offensive by the state-run CCTV against crypto trading and scams under the banner of blockchain. A report emphasized that the government push to suppress such activities has intensified, adding to the fear in the industry which has already led to crypto employees working from home rather than their offices.

Chinese Regulators Question 8 Crypto Companies in Shenzhen — Shenzhen

The Beijing Business Daily provided further insights into the Shenzhen case, quoting various sources including some from the interviewed companies. The Chinese outlet lists their names along with the allegations but a member of the local crypto community contacted by news.Bitcoin.com expressed doubts about the full accuracy of some of the media reports. One of the mentioned names, for example, is actually an old name of а well-known crypto platform formerly based in Shenzhen which has been deregistered since 2017. The company currently operates from Japan and Singapore, where it’s not only registered but also maintains its physical offices.

A source with knowledge of the regulatory efforts told the Beijing Business Daily, however, that regardless of whether a company is headquartered abroad or in China, if it provides crypto trading channels to domestic customers, Chinese authorities will be going after it. The thrust to sever such links to overseas crypto platforms is led by the People’s Bank of China on national level, with local cleanups carried out by regional financial bureaus with public security services and tax administrations playing supportive roles. The overall principle of this approach, as the economic daily notes, is that no virtual currency transaction is allowed.

Do you expect China’s crackdown on crypto companies to intensify further? Share your thoughts on the subject in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock.

Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here.

The post Chinese Regulators Question 8 Crypto Companies in Shenzhen appeared first on Bitcoin News.

China’s Inflation Hits a Record 4.5% as Beijing Prepares to Test Digital Yuan

12/12/2019 by Idelto Editor

China has been confronted with multiple economic and financial problems this year amidst an ongoing trade war with the United States. Authorities in Beijing have been trying to overcome the challenges with administrative measures in what has become a market economy over the years. And it’s backfiring. Inflation of the yuan just rose to its highest level since January 2012 and is projected to increase even further, to 4.7% by January. This is happening while Chinese state banks and corporations prepare to trial a digital version of the national fiat.

Also read: Another Bank Run Highlights China’s Brewing Financial Crisis

Chinese Inflation Records 7-Year High

In November, the annual inflation rate in the People’s Republic jumped to 4.5%, from 3.8% in October, according to official data provided by China’s National Bureau of Statistics. The increase surpassed market expectations of 4.2%, the Trading Economics website noted in its analysis. Consumer prices also increased on a monthly basis, by 0.4% last month and 0.9% the previous month, well over the forecasted 0.1% for November.

The main driver behind the steady increase this year has been the rise of food prices, which adds a politically sensitive dimension to the general economic picture. Food inflation exceeded 19% percent in November, which is the highest figure on record since May 2008. That was mainly caused by the continuing increase in pork prices after last year’s African swine fever epidemic. They jumped over 110% in November due to a low supply of pork. Non-food prices increased as well, including rent, fuel and utilities (0.4%), healthcare (2%), and other goods and services (4.5%).

Although Chinese inflation is yet to reach the highest levels of the years following the last global financial crisis, the current trend is certainly worrying. It has been formed alongside a deepening liquidity crisis in the country’s enormous financial system that has led to several small banks failing or suffering bank runs. Some of these institutions had to be bailed out by the government as hundreds of regional Chinese banks control as much assets as the country’s ‘big four’ state-owned banks.

Digital Yuan May Be Greeted With a Crisis

The bank insolvency cases have created a real credit crunch on the interbank lending market and small banks have been forced to increase their already high deposit interest rates, to over 4% on annual deposits. To sustain liquidity in the sector, China’s central bank continued to pump fiat cash into the system. According to a recent report by Xinhua, only last month the People’s Bank of China injected 600 billion yuan (over $85 billion) via its medium-term lending facility (MLF), an instrument introduced back in 2014 for that same purpose.

True to its commitment to conduct a monetary policy that’s “neither too tight nor too loose,” as described by the government-run news agency, the PBOC also introduced 4.8 billion yuan of funds through pledged supplementary lending to the China Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank of China and the Agricultural Development Bank of China. Besides, the central bank lent more than 62 billion yuan to financial institutions through the standing lending facility, “maintaining market liquidity at a reasonably ample level in 2019,” as the report concludes.

But in a slowing economy, damaged by the trade conflict with the U.S., the People’s Bank has had to deal with declining growth rates as well. In November, it cut its one-year MLF rate, at which it provides funds to other banks, to 3.25% and reduced its one-year loan prime rate by five basis points to 4.15%. State-owned lenders were instructed to take the latter as a reference value for their loans and told to better serve the real economy. The administrative measures were aimed at stimulating businesses to borrow more after new lending fell in October to its lowest level since the beginning of the year.

Meanwhile, Chinese media broke the news this week that the launch of a planned central bank-issued digital currency (CBDC) could be imminent, with Beijing stepping up efforts to finalize the project. According to a report by Caijing Magazine, PBOC is preparing to start trials of the digital yuan in places like Shenzhen, where these may commence by the end of the year, and in Suzhou next year. Some of China’s largest financial institutions, the four major state-owned commercial banks, three leading telecom operators, and the tech giants Huawei, Alibaba, and Tencent are expected to participate. The People’s Bank has already set up two digital currency development companies in the two cities, the outlet noted citing knowledgeable sources.

“In the era of global digital currency, China is becoming a leader,” the Caijing Magazine stated. The digital yuan is obviously coming to existence soon rather than later. The question is whether it’s going to inherit the high inflation of the paper version.

Do you think China will be able to successfully quell its inflation crisis? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Trading Economics.

Did you know you can buy and sell BCH privately using our noncustodial, peer-to-peer Local Bitcoin Cash trading platform? The Local.Bitcoin.com marketplace has thousands of participants from all around the world trading BCH right now. And if you need a bitcoin wallet to securely store your coins, you can download one from us here.

The post China’s Inflation Hits a Record 4.5% as Beijing Prepares to Test Digital Yuan appeared first on Bitcoin News.

The Daily: Derivative Market Hits $12B in Volume, Reports of Layoffs, Another Fork

05/01/2019 by Idelto Editor

The Daily: Derivative Market Hits $12B in Volume, New Reports of Layoffs, Another Fork

Cryptocurrency exchange Huobi has announced reaching $12 billion in cumulative trading volume on its derivative market in December. The news comes amid reports of job cuts at its Shenzhen office. Also in The Daily this Saturday, major trading platforms have confirmed support for the upcoming Constantinople hard fork in the Ethereum network.

Also read: Cointext Offers Philippines BCH Wallet, Beam Launches Mimblewimble Coin

Huobi DM Ends Month With $12 Billion in Trading Volume

Huobi, the fourth largest crypto exchange by trading volume, has revealed that its derivatives platform, Huobi DM, registered over $12 billion of trade deals within the first month of its launch. Commenting on the financial results, Huobi Global CEO Livio Weng said the rapid growth “illustrates the strong desire” from institutional investors and professional traders to invest in cryptocurrencies. The executive added:

The time has come for tools to manage the risk and volatility of cryptocurrency – particularly during bear markets, like the one we find ourselves in now.

Huobi Derivative Market was launched in beta in November. Last month the parent company, Singapore-based Huobi, announced its integration with Huobi Global, the group’s main digital assets trading platform. Also in December, Huobi DM’s daily volume exceeded $1 billion. On Dec. 25, the combined trading volume of both platforms reached $2 billion.

Huobi DM’s contract trading service allows users to take long and short positions on bitcoin core (BTC), ethereum (ETH), and eos (EOS). It also provides clients with options for arbitrage, speculation and hedging in cryptocurrency trading.

Reports of Layoffs at the Shenzhen Office

The positive news about Huobi’s trading volumes coincided with Chinese media reports that the company is closing its Shenzhen branch, laying off all of its 14 employees. According to Odaily, the local subsidiary of the global exchange, which was focused on exploring innovations, was registered in October 2016 and at some point had over 20 full-time employees.

The online edition quotes multiple sources from the company who shared information about the upcoming closure of the Shenzhen office. Huobi’s director of public relations Shi Wei confirmed the plans for job cuts, stating they will affect only the worst-performing employees. She did not specify, however, the exact number of layoffs.

According to another source quoted by the business outlet Caijing, Huobi is closing its branch in Shenzhen because its activities are overlapping with those of other offices. The source also revealed some of the employees will join other Huobi branches, 8btc reported.

Major Exchanges to Support Constantinople Fork

Leading cryptocurrency trading platforms have announced their plans to support the upcoming Constantinople hard fork of the Ethereum network. The fork, which is expected to occur in mid-January, will reduce the block reward from 3 to 2 ETH, which in turn should decrease the circulating supply of ethereum in the future.

Ethereum core developers have also recently discussed and agreed to implement a new ASIC-resistant proof-of-work algorithm aimed at increasing the efficiency of mining with GPUs. The price of the coin with the second-largest market capitalization has increased in the past seven days, from around $135 to almost $157 at the time of writing.

In an announcement published on its website, Binance confirmed support for the Constantinople fork, asking traders to leave sufficient time for deposits to be processed in full prior to block height 7,080,000. Okex informed its customers that it will take a snapshot of all its accounts at the same block height, which is expected to occur between Jan. 14-18. Huobi Global stated it will help users to resolve any technical issues and all three exchanges promised to handle any airdrops during the hard fork.

What are your thoughts on today’s news tidbits? Tell us in the comments section.

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Smartmockups.

At Bitcoin.com there’s a bunch of free helpful services. For instance, have you seen our Tools page? You can even lookup the exchange rate for a transaction in the past. Or calculate the value of your current holdings. Or create a paper wallet. And much more.

The post The Daily: Derivative Market Hits $12B in Volume, Reports of Layoffs, Another Fork appeared first on Bitcoin News.

50% of Chinese Stock Exchange Companies Investigated Fail to Demonstrate Real Applications for Blockchain

27/12/2018 by Idelto Editor

Chinese Stock Exchanges Investigate Blockchain Companies, Half Fail to Demonstrate DLT Applications

According to Chinese state media, the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges have carried out investigations into 30 percent of companies listed on their exchanges that are performing operations pertaining to distributed ledger technology (DLT). Of the companies investigated, less than half were able to demonstrate applications for blockchain technology.

Also Read: Chatter Report: Vitalik Doesn’t Believe in Proof of Work, Chris Pacia Discusses Big Blocks

Listed Blockchain Companies Undergo Questioning From Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges

The recent speculative frenzy surrounding cryptocurrencies has led to a number of businesses seeking to associate their operations with virtual currencies and DLT. In many cases, the purported foray into blockchain has appeared dubious at best, despite many companies seeing dramatic volatility in the price of their shares, buoyed by news of blockchain adoption.

Chinese state-operated media outlet Securities Daily estimates that 80 public companies listed on the exchanges purport to have included DLT in their business model. Of the 80 companies, 56 have seen a rise in price, placing blockchain among the few sectors to be performing well in the two cities.

Data produced by Hithink Flush Information Network has indicated that 70 of the 80 blockchain-related stocks have seen price moves meeting the daily limit 10 percent price volatility during 2018, seven of which exceeded the limit more than 10 times this year.

More than 50 Percent of Investigated Blockchain Companies Fail to Demonstrate DLT Applications

23 of the 80 DLT companies have been directly investigated by the Shenzhen and Shanghai stock exchanges. Two thirds of the examinations took place during the first quarter of 2018.

According to Sina, the exchanges’ investigations predominantly sought to ascertain “the specific model of the blockchain business, including application scenarios and profit models,” and potential “operational risks” that may arise as a consequence of adopting DLT.

When asked to demonstrate the results of their blockchain operations, the companies are reported to have most frequently used the words “exploration” and “research,” with 13 of the 23 companies suspected of having sought to associate themselves with blockchain solely to drive speculation while failing to evidence applications for DLT.

What is your response to the exchanges’ findings that the majority of companies seeking to ride the blockchain bandwagon have no intention of delivering products and applications built on the technology? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Images courtesy of Shutterstock

The post 50% of Chinese Stock Exchange Companies Investigated Fail to Demonstrate Real Applications for Blockchain appeared first on Bitcoin News.