http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-20/bitcoin-spawns-china-virtual-ipos-as-u-s-scrutiny-grows.htmlThe lack of regulation, which has drawn scrutiny from U.S. regulators, is why Bitcoins are taking off in China, where the government controls the flow of money overseas and keeps a tight rein on what it views as undesirable behavior.
“The advantage for Chinese users to use Bitcoin is freedom, people can do something without any official authority,” said Patrick Lin, system administrator of Erights.net and owner of about 1,500 Bitcoins. Lin said he’s sticking to the currency itself, rather than IPOs, in part because of weak regulation. “The Bitcoin world is just like the Wild West -- no law, but opportunity and risk,” he said.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission didn’t respond to a faxed query on whether it’s looking at new rules regarding Bitcoin. So long as it remains small, the industry may continue to fly below the radar screen of a Chinese government more preoccupied with a faltering economy and social stability.
“If the circulation of Bitcoins is still confined to a small circle of people, it won’t be something on the Chinese authority’s priority list,” said Edward Au, co-head of Deloitte China’s public-offering group. “They already have too much to cope with.”
