The Ethiopian state electricity company has reportedly signed power supply agreements with 21 mainly Chinese bitcoin miners. The African country’s pursuit of foreign exchange has seemingly taken precedence over the concerns often raised by climate change advocates. Ethiopia Set to Become the Preferred Destination for Chinese Bitcoin Miners Ethiopia’s state power company has entered into […]
Bitcoin News
UK Police Seize 61,000 Bitcoins From Huge Chinese Investment Fraud
The U.K. Metropolitan Police have reportedly seized more than 61,000 bitcoins from a massive Chinese investment fraud. A British citizen is accused of laundering bitcoin for a Chinese fugitive who allegedly stole roughly .4 billion from more than 128,000 investors.
British Police Seize Over 61,000 Bitcoins
The U.K. Metropolitan Police have seized more than 61,000 bitcoins from a massive investment fraud in China, marking one of the largest cryptocurrency seizures globally, the Financial Times reported Tuesday.
The bitcoin seizure information was disclosed during a trial of 42-year-old Jian Wen, who is accused of laundering bitcoin for her former employer, Zhimin Qian (also known as Yadi Zhang), an alleged fugitive from China. Wen moved to the U.K. in 2007 from China and became a British citizen in 2018.
At the start of the trial at Southwark Crown Court on Monday, the prosecution informed the jury that the seized BTC originated from an investment fraud conducted by Zhang in China between 2014 and 2017. The U.K. police seized four separate devices containing more than 61,000 bitcoins from a safety deposit box and a residence shared by Wen and Zhang in 2018. The seized bitcoin was valued at nearly .8 billion in July 2021 when the police recovered the coins. It has appreciated to .6 billion, based on today’s price of ,049 per BTC.
Zhang allegedly stole .4 billion from over 128,000 investors and converted the money into BTC. Prosecutors say she entered London in 2017 using a false identity, but has since fled the U.K. and remains at large.
While pleading not guilty to involvement in the underlying fraud, Wen is accused of knowingly aiding the conversion of Zhang’s bitcoin into cash, jewelry, luxury items, and property. Gillian Jones KC, counsel for the Crown Prosecution Service, was quoted by the Financial Times as saying:
Ms. Wen had been trusted not only with copies of the passwords and passphrases to access the laptops [containing the bitcoin] but with access to where the laptops were being stored.
This week, the Saxony state police in Germany also revealed that around 50,000 bitcoins have been seized in a case they described as “the most extensive seizure of bitcoins by law enforcement authorities in the Federal Republic of Germany to date.”
What do you think about the U.K. police seizing 61,000 bitcoins from a massive fraud in China? Let us know in the comments section below.
Affected by the National Stock Market Downturn, Chinese Investors Have Flocked to Gold
Chinese investors have been buying gold as an investment, motivated by the poor performance of traditional stock and property options. According to World Gold Council (WGC) reports, China had the largest demand for gold for jewelry and investment purposes in 2023. This, and the demand from central banks has maintained gold prices over ,000.
Chinese Investors Flock to Gold
Chinese investors are returning to gold amid one of the worst national stock market routs in the last five years. The nation registered the largest demand for gold for investment and jewelry in 2023, according to the World Gold Council (WGC), helping prices maintain over ,000 per ounce.
Demand for gold in China for investment purposes rose by over 25%, reaching 280 tonnes last year. In the same way, China required 630 tonnes of gold for jewelry in 2023, 10% more than in 2022.
Experts asserted that, while understated, China’s market behavior was relevant for gold last year. Louise Street, senior markets analyst at WGC, commented:
China was key to a lot of what was happening last year. When you look at the consumer sector, China is not the price-setting factor but it is providing a floor.
While global official gold demand subsided last year compared to the numbers posted in 2022, when incorporating over-the-counter (OTC) and stock flows, it registered all-time high numbers, with customers requiring almost 4,900 tonnes of the precious metal. And in China’s case, this demand shows no sign of diminishing anytime soon, according to Adrian Ash, Bullionvault’s research director.
However, this demand has not been only limited to gold. Reports have also found that Chinese investors have been investing in cryptocurrencies, even though crypto trading has been banned in China since 2021. To sidestep these restrictions, they have been using Hong Kong and their ,000 foreign currency quota, given that crypto trading is still perfectly legal in the city.
As a consequence, Hong Kong officials are strengthening the regulation of OTC markets “to mitigate the potential risks of virtual assets while providing transparency for the users,” Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Joseph Chan Ho-lim declared.
What do you think about China and its demand for gold? Tell us in the comments section below.
Woman Accused of Laundering Bitcoins for Chinese Fraudster Goes on Trial in the UK
A British citizen recently went on trial in the U.K. for laundering bitcoins on behalf of a fugitive Chinese fraudster, Yadi Zhang. Prosecutors insist that Jian Wen was aware that Zhang’s bitcoins were acquired using stolen funds. However, Wen defended her actions and said she thought Zhang had accumulated her wealth through her jewelry business, property portfolio, and bitcoin mining operation.
Zhang’s Wealth Management Business
A British-Chinese woman, Jian Wen, is on trial in the U.K. for allegedly laundering bitcoins that were sourced with .3 billion stolen from more than 128,000 investors in China. According to prosecutors, Wen is facing three charges of laundering money on behalf of the Chinese national Yadi Zhang.
Zhang, a fugitive from justice, is said to have perpetrated the grand fraud via her bogus wealth management business between 2014 and 2017. Afterwards, she reportedly converted some of the stolen money to bitcoin (BTC) before leaving for London under a false identity.
Upon arriving in the U.K., Zhang sought the services of Wen to convert her BTC into cash, jewellery, and other luxury items. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) alleges that Zhang’s ultimate objective was “to disguise the true source of the funds.”
During the trial, Gillian Jones, who represented the CPS, stated that while Wen was not involved in the fraud, she may have known that Zhang’s bitcoins were proceeds from criminal activity. Jones urged the jury to ask Wen if she was aware of Zhang’s criminal activities.
The lawyer argued that Wen, a naturalized British citizen, knowingly acted as a front for Zhang and was probably paid for it. However, Wen defended her actions and said she thought Zhang had accumulated her wealth through her jewellery business, property portfolio, and bitcoin mining operation.
The trial is expected to run until early March, according to the report.
What are your thoughts on this story? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Chinese Investors Are Turning to Crypto Amidst a National Stock Market Slump
Chinese investors are increasingly putting part of their portfolios in cryptocurrency due to the state of the national stock market. According to reports, investors are using exchanges like Binance or Okx, or Hong Kong local exchanges, to purchase crypto using payment methods like Alipay and Wechat, even when cryptocurrency is banned in the Chinese mainland.
Chinese Investors Seeking Earnings in Crypto
Cryptocurrency is making a comeback in China, as Chinese investors have turned to these looking for profitability as the national stock market is facing a slump. According to Reuters, even though purchasing and trading cryptocurrency has been banned since 2021, Chinese investors have found a way to allocate significant fractions of their portfolios to crypto.
These investors can use exchanges like Binance and Okx trading groups and traditional payment methods like Alipay and Wechat to purchase stablecoins from local dealers, entering the cryptocurrency investment arena. Also, over-the-counter exchanges exist, facilitating access to crypto.
A senior executive of a Hong Kong-based exchange confirmed these movements, stating that the current slump “has made investment on the mainland risky, uncertain and disappointing, so people are looking to allocate assets offshore.”
“Almost everyday, we see mainland investors coming into this market,” he remarked.
Not only individuals are trying to find opportunities in the cryptocurrency market. Institutions that have been hurt by the performance of the traditional investment markets are also seeking a way of changing their narrative.
The same senior executive stated:
If you are a Chinese brokerage, facing a sluggish stock market, weak demand for IPOs, and shrinkage in other businesses, you need a growth story to tell your shareholders and the board.
Chainalysis, a blockchain intelligence company, has confirmed that Chinese crypto numbers have bounced, reaching 13th place in global peer-to-peer markets in 2023, rising from 144th in 2022. Transactions amounted to .4 billion between July 2022 and June 2023, more than what was traded in Hong Kong in the same period.
What do you think about the rebirth of cryptocurrency as an investment tool for Chinese investors? Tell us in the comments section below.
Bitcoin Attracts Millions In Chinese Capital Despite Ban: Report
Chinese investors remain resolute in their pursuit of Bitcoin, despite the government’s ban since 2021. Bitcoin continues to attract substantial investment from Chinese capital, as Reuters reports today.
Mainland China Is Still Buying Bitcoin
Dylan Run, a finance executive in Shanghai, epitomizes this trend. Concerned about China’s economic outlook and the sluggish domestic stock market, Run ventured into Bitcoin in early 2023.
As detailed in the Reuters report, he employed an astute strategy, utilizing bank cards issued by rural banks and keeping each transaction below 50,000 yuan (,978) to evade regulatory scrutiny. In his view, “Bitcoin is a safe haven, like gold.” Run has now allocated nearly half of his investment portfolio to BTC, which has surged heavily, outperforming China’s ailing stock market.
Remarkably, Run’s journey reflects a broader movement among Chinese investors who are actively seeking unconventional pathways to access Bitcoin. The Reuters report highlights that Chinese Bitcoin investors operate within a regulatory gray area, as cryptocurrency trading is officially banned in mainland China, and strict controls govern capital flows across borders.
Despite these constraints, Chinese investors persist in trading Bitcoin on offshore exchanges such as OKX and Binance, or via over-the-counter channels. Additionally, as noted in the Reuters report, Chinese citizens have ingeniously leveraged their ,000 annual foreign exchange purchase quotas, typically reserved for overseas travel or education, to fund BTC accounts in Hong Kong.
This phenomenon is driven by a growing appetite for diversification amid China’s economic uncertainties. One investor succinctly expressed the sentiment, stating, “Given the economic climate in China, exploring alternative investments like cryptocurrencies has become a necessity.”
Bitcoin, along with other digital assets, has emerged as a sanctuary for these investors as they navigate China’s complex economic landscape. Importantly, this trend extends beyond retail investors. Chinese financial institutions are also exploring opportunities within the cryptocurrency sector, as highlighted in the Reuters report.
An executive from a Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange underscored the rationale, stating, “Faced with a sluggish stock market, weak demand for IPOs, and contraction in other businesses, Chinese brokerages need a compelling growth narrative for their shareholders and boards.”
Off-Shore Crypto Exchanges Facilitate Trading
As the report observes, access to Bitcoin remains relatively accessible within mainland China. Off-shore crypto exchanges like OKX and Binance continue to offer their services to Chinese investors, providing guidance on converting yuan into stablecoins through fintech platforms like Ant Group’s Alipay and Tencent’s WeChat Pay.
Chainalysis, a cryptocurrency data platform, shed light on the extent of this resilient activity. Contrary to the regulatory ban, the report reveals that crypto-related activities in China have surged.
China’s global ranking in terms of peer-to-peer trade volume skyrocketed from 144th in 2022 to 13th in 2023. Astonishingly, the Chinese crypto market recorded an estimated .4 billion in transaction volume between July 2022 and June 2023, far surpassing Hong Kong’s billion in crypto trading. Notably, the proportion of large retail transactions, ranging from ,000 to million, nearly doubled the global average of 3.6%.
According to Chainalysis, the developments “have created speculation that the Chinese government may be warming to cryptocurrency and that Hong Kong may be a testing ground for these efforts.”
At press time, BTC traded at ,268.
Egypt Becomes First MENA Country to Issue Chinese Yuan-Denominated Bonds
Eygpt has reportedly become the first Middle East North Africa (MENA) region country to issue so-called “panda bonds” after it issued Chinese yuan denominated bonds worth 9 million. Issuing panda bonds marks another step in Egypt’s attempts to move away from costly dollar denominated loans.
Egypt’s Worsening Debt Affordability
Egypt, one of Africa’s heavily indebted countries, recently issued Chinese currency denominated bonds worth an estimated 9 million or 3.5 billion yuan. The three-year bonds, which were reportedly issued with an interest rate of 3.5%, are part of the North African country’s attempts at diversifying the country’s funding sources.
According to a Business Insider report, the rate of interest on these bonds is much lower than what Egypt would ordinarily pay were they denominated in dollars. Lowering the cost of servicing its debts remains a priority for Egypt, which recently had its credit rating status lowered to Caa1, some seven levels into junk status. Egypt’s worsening debt affordability was cited by rating agency Moody’s as one of the reasons why the country’s credit status was cut.
However, Mohamed Maait, Egypt’s finance minister, is quoted in the Business Insider report expressing his country’s desire to rein in on borrowing costs.
“We are working on diversifying our financing sources through different capital markets as well as securing guarantees from several institutions to reduce the cost of the debt during this challenging high interest-rate environment,” Maait reportedly said.
Egypt’s De-Dollarization Drive
The yuan bonds, also known as “panda bonds,” are debt instruments issued by non-Chinese entities. The bonds can only be sold in China, while issuers are not permitted to repatriate such funds. Poland and the Philippines are known to be the only countries to have issued such bonds.
By issuing the so-called panda bonds, Egypt has become the first country from the MENA region to do so. The move also makes good on Egypt’s pledge to de-dollarize its economy. Meanwhile, in addition to the panda bonds, Egypt is also reportedly planning to issue Japanese yen denominated bonds or “samurai” bonds.
What are your thoughts on this story? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Chinese Developers Eager To Build On Solana: Will SOL Breeze Past $30?
China developers are active and willing to build on leading blockchain platforms if statistics from Solana Hyperdrive Hackathon submission details are anything to go by. In an X post on October 17, Matty Taylor, the Head of Growth at the Solana Foundation, said there were far more developers from China who submitted applications, willing to participate in the Solana Hyperdrive hackathon than from the United States.
Solana Attracting Chinese Developers
The hackathon has a prize pool of million, and all submissions had to be submitted by October 15. It is an online event aiming to “nurture and expand” the Solana ecosystem.
Developers from 68 countries submitted, with the highest numbers coming from China and Vietnam. The rest were mainly from the United States, India, Mexico, Turkey, and Germany.
That notable participation from Chinese developers can be a massive boost for Solana, indicating that the blockchain could be popular in the Asian economic powerhouse. China remains pro-blockchain and believes that the technology can give them an edge and even improve efficiency in some critical sectors, like agriculture, healthcare, governance, and finance, that the country seeks to enhance gradually.
However, China has banned crypto trading and mining, citing the “need to go green, protect consumers, and ensure financial stability.” The Chinese central bank, PBoC, said cryptocurrencies could pose a risk to the country’s financial system.
Unlike Ethereum, Solana permits fast transaction processing and is relatively scalable with decent activity. Although the project suffered following the collapse of FTX in November 2022, there has been a revival in price and on-chain activity.
The Revival, Will SOL Breach ?
To illustrate, non-fungible token (NFT) trading activity on Solana has steadily risen over the past few months. While there was a spike, the network didn’t halt, as in previous instances, especially in 2022.
Instead, the high reliability seems to have inspired activity, directly helping revive SOL prices that collapsed by over 90%, worsened by news that Sam Bankman-Fried and Alameda Research allegedly embezzled customer funds. FTX had invested in Solana and has a considerable share of SOL, which will be liquidated and reimbursed to impacted clients.
At spot rates, SOL is up 36% from September 2023 lows and overly firm. Looking at the candlestick arrangement in the daily chart, SOL is trading at October and 2023 highs and could break higher if bulls press on. The October 16 bull bar is wide-ranging, has marked trading volumes, and could anchor the next leg towards July 2023 highs of around .
US Mulls Tighter Restrictions on AI Chip Shipments to Chinese Firms, Report
The government in Washington is reportedly considering further limiting China’s access to U.S. processors used in artificial intelligence (AI) applications. The current restrictions, which were introduced last year, allow Chinese companies to source the chips through overseas subsidiaries.
Washington Seeks to Further Curb Chinese Access to American AI Chips, Sources Say
The administration of President Joe Biden may broaden the curbs on the shipments of U.S. semiconductors used for AI to Chinese companies to include their units abroad, Reuters reported on Friday, quoting people familiar with the matter.
The measures announced in 2022 sought to thwart Beijing’s military advances by preventing the supply of American AI chips and chipmaking tools to China. However, the initial restrictions did not cover overseas subsidiaries of Chinese firms.
This meant they could still be imported into the People’s Republic or accessed remotely by China-based users, the report noted. However, the loophole is likely to be closed soon, according to one of the knowledgeable sources.
Greg Allen, a director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, is convinced that companies from China are able to acquire the processors. “Absolutely, Chinese firms are purchasing chips for use in data centers abroad,” he said, pointing to Singapore, a major hub for cloud computing, as an example.
Washington has been trying to halt the progress of China’s AI capability which currently depends on access to American chips. According to a study by the Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) think tank released earlier this year, almost all AI chips procured via Chinese military tenders over an 8-month period in 2020 were designed by U.S.-based companies Nvidia, Xilinx, Intel, and Microsemi.
In August of this year, the U.S. government expanded a restriction on the exports of AI chips made by Nvidia and AMD to China to include certain countries in the Middle East. The new measures, expected as early as this month, are likely to cover other suppliers as well, the sources said.
Meanwhile, the launch and rising popularity of AI-based chatbots and assistants like Chatgpt and others have caused a deficit in the market for AI processors. Recent reports revealed that Chatgpt’s developer, Openai, is exploring making its own AI chips to deal with the shortage.
Do you think the U.S. will expand curbs on AI chip shipments to Chinese companies in the coming weeks? Tell us in the comments section below.
Renowned Investor Jim Rogers Warns of US Dollar Dominance Ending — Sees Chinese Yuan as the Only Competitor
Veteran investor Jim Rogers, who co-founded the Quantum Fund with billionaire investor George Soros, has reiterated his warning of the end of U.S. dollar dominance. “I know that the era of the U.S. dollar is coming to an end. No currency stayed on top forever,” he stressed, adding that the only currency with the potential to displace the USD as the world’s reserve currency is the Chinese yuan.
Jim Rogers on End of U.S. Dollar Hegemony
Veteran investor Jim Rogers discussed a variety of topics, including the end of the U.S. dollar dominance and alternative currencies, in an interview with Nomad Capitalist, published on Oct. 1. Rogers is George Soros’ former business partner who co-founded the Quantum Fund and Soros Fund Management.
While admitting that he owns a lot of U.S. dollars, Rogers stressed:
I know that the era of the U.S. dollar is coming to an end. No currency stayed on top forever — no more than 100-150 years, none in history.
While reiterating that he “can see the era of the U.S. dollar is coming to an end,” the renowned investor opined:
I don’t see another currency at the moment that can compete except the Chinese currency.
However, Rogers explained that the Chinese yuan is a “blocked currency,” emphasizing that “you can’t just buy and sell it like you can euros or dollars.” He added that until China “completely opens its currency,” the renminbi will not be able to displace the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency.
Rogers noted that China has been slowly opening its currency. “They are doing it. They’ve been doing it for 20 years, but it’s not enough if you ask me,” the veteran investor continued. “But it’s the only currency that I can see on the horizon that someday can compete with the U.S. dollar. I hope something else comes along but I don’t see it yet.”
Rogers also raised concerns that the U.S. is now the largest debtor in the history of the world. “No nation has ever been as deeply in debt as we are, the U.S. is,” he said.
The veteran investor has been warning about the end of U.S. dollar hegemony for quite some time. In July, he cautioned that the U.S. is going to suffer as the dollar’s value erodes further. He also previously predicted the worst bear market in his lifetime and the U.S. encountering the worst recession he has seen.
Do you agree with veteran investor Jim Rogers? Let us know in the comments section below.