I’ve noticed that Chinese cryptocurrencies are once again in the spotlight. It’s an interesting situation—on the one hand, for years China has been trying to crack down on crypto within the country, and on the other hand, it remains one of the main players in the global market. It all looks somewhat paradoxical.

If we look back at history, it all began roughly around the time Bitcoin started gaining popularity. As everywhere, the attitude was mixed—intrigue plus skepticism. But then China decided to take the initiative into its own hands. In 2017, they banned ICOs and shut down exchanges—a tough approach. And this seriously affected the market.

The paradox is that despite all these bans, Chinese cryptocurrencies continue to develop. Take Neo and VeChain, for example—both projects with Chinese roots, and both are functioning normally. Foreign workers in China actively use crypto for money transfers and asset protection—this is a fact.

Even more interesting is that mining there was simply enormous. Massive farms, and Bitcoin’s hash rate depended on China. Then, in 2021, they banned mining as well—now that was a blow to the market. The hash rate fell, and destabilization followed.

But the most intriguing development is the digital yuan. Government digital currency, blockchain technology, full control. To be honest, this shows that China isn’t against crypto as such, but against losing control. They just want their own version.

That creates an interesting picture: strict regulation, bans on ICOs, the closure of exchanges, a ban on mining—but at the same time, the development of their own digital currency. All of this affects the entire global market, investment trends, and the technological landscape of crypto. China’s actions are always a signal to the entire world.