Why Did The Chinese Government Crack Down On Bitcoin?

[DavidZ]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JP9-lAYngi4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

In this discussion (3 min from the end) Andreas Antonopoulos suggests that the Chinese government should be in favour of bitcoin because it will provide an alternative reserve currency to the currency of its foe, the US government.

If this is true (and I'm not saying it is) but if true why would the Chinese government crack down on bitcoin?

Could the US government have applied diplomatic pressure on the Chinese government to force them to crack down on bitcoin?

[Abdussamad]

The Renminbi is rapidly growing as an international currency. It recently came into the top 8 or 10 of most used trade currencies. The government of China's priority lies in promoting the renminbi not bitcoin. Bitcoin is facilitating capital flight from China. Why would they allow it? You are going to see a clampdown on bitcoin in all developing countries.

The only countries that stand to benefit from bitcoin are, ironically, financial centers. That's right! Places where bankers rule is where bitcoin is being welcomed the most. Consider Switzerland, Singapore and Germany. These countries are adopting bitcoin because they see it as a threat and it is essential for their survival that they play along. The only exception to this are the USA, because they want to preserve the role of the dollar, and the UK. I imagine the British are just following the Americans in this. Got to preserve that special relationship!

[DavidZ]

The Renminbi is rapidly growing as an international currency. It recently came into the top 8 or 10 of most used trade currencies. The government of China's priority lies in promoting the renminbi not bitcoin. Bitcoin is facilitating capital flight from China. Why would they allow it? You are going to see a clampdown on bitcoin in all developing countries.

The only countries that stand to benefit from bitcoin are, ironically, financial centers. That's right! Places where bankers rule is where bitcoin is being welcomed the most. Consider Switzerland, Singapore and Germany. These countries are adopting bitcoin because they see it as a threat and it is essential for their survival that they play along. The only exception to this are the USA, because they want to preserve the role of the dollar, and the UK. I imagine the British are just following the Americans in this. Got to preserve that special relationship!

Makes sense.

[bryant.coleman]

China is not a democratic country. It is a communist dictatorship, whose power lies in the absolute loyalty of its subjects, a la North Korea. If Bitcoins spread among the common Chinese population, it won't be easy for the dictatorship to trace the financial transactions of its subjects. Probably they cracked down the BTC after taking this in to effect.

[Spendulus]

China is not a democratic country. It is a communist dictatorship....

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

[Wilikon]

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=376831.msg4036665#msg4036665

[Haidang1796]

China is not a democratic country. It is a communist dictatorship, whose power lies in the absolute loyalty of its subjects, a la North Korea. If Bitcoins spread among the common Chinese population, it won't be easy for the dictatorship to trace the financial transactions of its subjects. Probably they cracked down the BTC after taking this in to effect.

this one seems legit

[nastybit]

China is not a democratic country. It is a communist dictatorship....

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

It's not simplistic, it's the truth. I agree with bryant.coleman
We are controlled by our govts with money, how much we earn and how much we spend to survive.
Remove the control over money and people will be free to do whatever they want with their life.

[Spendulus]

China is not a democratic country. It is a communist dictatorship....

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

It's not simplistic, it's the truth. I agree with bryant.coleman
We are controlled by our govts with money, how much we earn and how much we spend to survive.
Remove the control over money and people will be free to do whatever they want with their life.

No, it is simlified.  Extremely so.

For example, private property rights have been recognized in China for some time.

That's NOT communism, is it?

Yeah, it's a weird warp of a couple of things, but that was kind of my point...

[CoinCidental]

google "Capital control in china "
they dont want to give away control of the economy  by having alternative options
like btc for people to buy /sell /move /store  their wealth/ avoid taxes or anything else
that they dont have full control over

[notabot]

The ban is on financial institutions - an individual can still own bitcoins

China has it's own banking crisis and the official statements were that "while the computer-generated currency does not yet pose a threat to China's financial system, it carries risks. It did not, however, curtail the use of bitcoin by individuals."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/05/china-bitcoin-idUSL4N0JK1KZ20131205

I would also agree with the post above.

[black_swan]

google "Capital control in china "
they dont want to give away control of the economy  by having alternative options
like btc for people to buy /sell /move /store  their wealth/ avoid taxes or anything else
that they dont have full control over

You can apply this to almost every government is this world.
China applied some very strict rules but people can still buy it somehow and I guess they already do.

China is not a democratic country. It is a communist dictatorship....

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

It's not simplistic, it's the truth. I agree with bryant.coleman
We are controlled by our govts with money, how much we earn and how much we spend to survive.
Remove the control over money and people will be free to do whatever they want with their life.

No, it is simlified.  Extremely so.

For example, private property rights have been recognized in China for some time.

That's NOT communism, is it?

Yeah, it's a weird warp of a couple of things, but that was kind of my point...

Dude have a look here :-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech_by_country#People.27s_Republic_of_China_.28mainland.29

[Spendulus]

....

Dude have a look here :-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech_by_country#People.27s_Republic_of_China_.28mainland.29

There is  a long, long history of the Chinese people having their money systems screwed around with and made worthless.  Introduction of paper money when the norm was silver.  There is a popular culture that prizes gold as a store of value, and which is comfortable with cash transactions.  Many of these attitudes survived virtually intact through the Mao regime.  Now anyone can own property, and pass it to their heirs.  Capitalism is encouraged within constraints and with proper bribes and so forth.  Etc, etc.

You can be around Chinese for decades and not be knowledgeable enough to talk as a 'China watcher'.  The culture and the people are far more than their current government. 

Others here, from the mainland, can weigh in if they want.

[bryant.coleman]

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

China might be having 1,000 ethnic groups and each will be speaking a language of its own... but only one group (Han) holds the power. The other groups are marginalized (Tibetans, Mongols.etc).

[Abdussamad]

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

China might be having 1,000 ethnic groups and each will be speaking a language of its own... but only one group (Han) holds the power. The other groups are marginalized (Tibetans, Mongols.etc).

Ah yes we can't have a discussion about China without bringing up that stick westerners use to beat China with - Tibet!

[Ekaros]

So basicly they aren't much worse than other nations...

I understand reasons of tax avoidance and such...

[bryant.coleman]

Ah yes we can't have a discussion about China without bringing up that stick westerners use to beat China with - Tibet!

I am not a westerner. I am an Asian. And I'll stick to my stand that the regime in China is one of the most oppressive of its kind in the entire world.

[Spendulus]

far too simplistic a rendering of a country with over 1000 languages, dude...

China might be having 1,000 ethnic groups and each will be speaking a language of its own... but only one group (Han) holds the power. The other groups are marginalized (Tibetans, Mongols.etc).

thousands of years of that, too...

[AnonyMint]

If this is true (and I'm not saying it is) but if true why would the Chinese government crack down on bitcoin?

Because all countries of the world are controlled by the elite who control commerce and the creation of money in those countries.

I have no idea why you neophytes think China is somehow different in this respect.

On the more conspiratorial level, the globalists are working together to bring us a technocracy where they collect and control data on all transactions. This is for example what Smart residential electric meters are about, they monitor all activity in the household. Soon all your appliances will have a chip that must communicate with the meter in order to receive power.

China is very much the technocracy and as its rises to the world's financial power, it will be the model under which the world goes to hell.

I for one am doing everything in my technical capability to destroy this. But I am not getting very much cooperation from you neophytes. You seem to be like frogs boiling in the pot. You don't get it.

China can't stop a truly anonymous cryptocurrency. No one can. Be ready to support it when it comes out.

[bitpop]

A politicians son had to "invent the first exchange"duh