As China was seen progressing towards its central bank digital currency [CBDC], the digital yuan, it decided to bid adieu to the crypto-verse. While several believe that crypto is liberating and allows individuals to steer away from the shackles of centralized institutions, the Chinese government takes down the interest in crypto in the country.
Recently, China shut down an array of crypto mining firms across the region. Despite this immense clampdown, the rate of crypto crime in the country has remained relatively high however, the numbers have comparatively reduced.
A recent report from Chainalysis revealed that the country’s crypto criminal record has been depleting since the end of 2019, yet China remains in the top five.
China’s crypto crime rate slowly decreasing
Chainalysis’s recent report titled, “Cryptocurrency and China” pointed out that the country had witnessed about $2.2 billion worth of crypto involved in illicit transactions. In addition to this, the majority of Chinese addresses had reportedly garnered crypto worth over $2 billion through scams as well as the dark web.
Despite this, the report suggested that the country’s crypto-related criminal activities were reducing. The report further read,
“Notably, China’s transaction volume with illicit addresses has fallen drastically over the time period studied, both in terms of raw value and in relation to other countries. Much of the drop is due to the absence of large-scale Ponzi schemes like the 2019 PlusToken scam, which primarily targeted users across Asia and whose proceeds were largely laundered through Chinese services. While China remains one of the top-ranked countries for illicit transaction volume, it used to beat all others by a wide margin, suggesting that cryptocurrency-related crime in the country has fallen.”
The Chinese police weren’t far behind. The country’s law enforcement managed to nab several criminals in over 1,000 arrests in June alone.
While the US remains the top-ranked country in terms of receiving the most number of crypto, China was right behind the US.
Amidst this bustle, the country plunged way ahead in the crypto game. The digital yuan was already being used by the public while several other countries were still in the research stage.