If you’re into Bitcoin, you’ll have watched the valuation of the virtual currency crash over the past 24 hours or so. That’s (likely) due to a series of incidents in China, which culminated in BTC China — the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange — stopping deposits in Renminbi, China’s currency, today.
The move — spotted by the New York Times — followed reports that the Bank of China (BoC) had outlawed transactions between Bitcoin exchanges and third-party payment systems. All of this sent today’s Bitcoin price down to $435 (on average, and at time of writing) — the value was as high as $880 on Monday.
The BoC warned of the risks of Bitcoin earlier this month — while it would be impossible for the government to ban all use of the crypto-currency, its future in China is unclear at this point.
➤ China Bitcoin Exchange Ends Renminbi Deposits [New York Times]
Image via Antana / Flickr
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