China: Shenzhen Identifies 39 Crypto Exchanges Defying Trading Ban

Cryptocurrency exchanges operating illegally in one city in China will face the wrath of a joint government effort to oust them, reports claim.

On Nov. 22, authorities in Shenzhen have identified a total of 39 exchanges falling foul of China’s cryptocurrency trading ban, according to local news outlet Sanyan Finance. 

PBoC highlights Bitcoin and Ethereum in probe

The operation reportedly included participation from China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), the Economic Investigation Bureau of the Municipal Public Security Bureau and the Municipal Communications Administration. 

It remains unknown what consequences the exchanges will face, with Sanyan highlighting a desire to crack down on liquidity.

A rough translation states the measures involve a three-pronged approach:

“It is reported that the action will focus on three activities: first, providing virtual currency trading services or opening virtual currency trading places in China; second, providing service channels for overseas virtual currency trading places, including services such as drainage and agency trading; Sell ​​tokens in various names, raise funds for investors or virtual currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.”

Cointelegraph previously noted the existence of the Shenzhen plans, which also target entities beyond the exchange sector.

No police raids took place, says Binance

As Cointelegraph reported, China continues to present a varied stance on cryptocurrency. After publicly voicing support for blockchain technology last month, Chinese media issued warnings not to confuse the policy for endorsement of phenomena such as Bitcoin. 

This week, meanwhile, cryptocurrency exchange Binance denied rumors police had raided its office in Shanghai. Shortly afterward, fellow exchange Bithumb similarly rejected the idea it planned to close its Shanghai outpost, while Huobi stated likewise.

“We have heard of this from some media reports. However, we have not received any specific instructions at this point,” a Huobi representative said.

Commenting on the Shenzhen move, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhang praised what he saw as an effort to remove bad actors.

“This is actually a very good thing to happen, cleaning up the industry of scammers and fraudsters,” he wrote in response to PrimitiveCrypto’s founding partner, Dovey Wan.

Wan had claimed that the targets of the shutdown were “most likely are ponzi and crypto frauds as Shenzhen is known for being the hub of those.”