Alipay Denounces Bitcoin OTC Trading Amid Regulatory ‘Gray’ Area

The crypto news in China are always showing ups and downs. Earlier this year, Binance announced a fiat on-ramp for crypto trading through the Chinese payment services Alipay and WeChat. The move was part of the exchange’s plan for making most of peer-to-peer (P2P) trading for cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and Tether (USDT) against the Chinese yuan. Now, Alipay denounces Bitcoin OTC trading and makes huge waves in the industry.
buy levaquin generic buy levaquin online no prescription

Using payment channels like Alipay and WeChat for crypto trading is what is a main topic of scrutiny in China. Alipay did, in fact, release statements and distanced itself from crypto trading activities – and Binance later clarified that it wasn’t working directly with the aforementioned payment services.

As Alipay denounces Bitcoin OTC trading, the situation and narrative around it speak to the legal status of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in China. Even with a major trading ban in place, there are still whispers of a potential booming P2P arena. As it stands, authorities in Beijing are seeming to adopt a “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” approach.

The cryptocurrency regulation news also show that Chinese businesses and authorities want to stop these things from happening. Moreover, it seems like the country’s proposed digital currency might necessitate the emergence of more clear-cut handling of the crypto commerce in China.

As we previously reported on our news site, the Alibaba-owned payment channel Alipay has moved and banned transactions involving Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. A spokesperson for the platform then wrote:

“Alipay closely monitors over-the-counter (OTC) transactions to identify irregular behavior and ensure compliance with relevant regulations. If any transactions are identified as being related to bitcoin or other virtual currencies, we immediately stop the relevant payment services.”

This statement came in direct response to reports that Chinese crypto traders were using the platform as a P2P trading marketplace. This even led to Binance announcing that it had enabled support for fiat deposits via Alipay and WeChat.

As Alipay denounces Bitcoin OTC trading and denies the use of its platform for that type of trading, several commentators say that this practice is common in China. The summary of the arguments posted by many is that such activities are illegal on paper but still fall in a regulatory gray area.