On the evening of February 6, multiple regulatory departments officially released the notice (No. Yinfab [2026] 42) from the People's Bank of China, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the Financial Regulatory Administration, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange regarding further prevention and handling of risks related to virtual currencies.
This is the official regulatory document released after the meeting of multiple ministries to coordinate efforts to combat virtual currency trading speculation, held on November 28, 2025. This notice shall take effect from the date of its release. It also repeals the notice issued in 2021 by the People's Bank of China and ten other departments (regarding further prevention and handling of risks related to virtual currency trading speculation).
The full text of the notice is as follows:
People's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government, Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps:
Recently, speculative activities related to virtual currencies and real-world asset (RWA) tokenization have occurred from time to time, disrupting economic and financial order and endangering the property safety of the people. To further prevent and address risks related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, effectively maintain national security and social stability, and in accordance with the provisions of the (People's Republic of China People's Bank Law), (People's Republic of China Commercial Bank Law), (People's Republic of China Securities Law), (People's Republic of China Securities Investment Fund Law), (People's Republic of China Futures and Derivatives Law), (People's Republic of China Cybersecurity Law), (People's Republic of China Renminbi Management Regulations), (Regulations on Preventing and Dealing with Illegal Fundraising), (People's Republic of China Foreign Exchange Management Regulations), (People's Republic of China Telecommunications Regulations), and other regulations, with the agreement of the Central Cyberspace Administration, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the following notice is hereby issued regarding relevant matters:
1. Clarify the essential attributes of virtual currencies, real-world asset tokenization, and related business activities
(1) Virtual currencies do not have the same legal status as legal tender. Virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether have the main characteristics of being issued by non-monetary authorities, using encryption technology and distributed ledgers or similar technologies, and existing in digital form. They do not have legal tender status and should not and cannot be circulated as currency in the market.
Activities related to virtual currencies are considered illegal financial activities. Conducting exchange activities between legal tender and virtual currencies, exchange activities between virtual currencies, acting as a central counterparty for buying and selling virtual currencies, providing information intermediary and pricing services for virtual currency transactions, token issuance financing, and trading of financial products related to virtual currencies are all strictly prohibited and must be resolutely banned according to law. Foreign entities and individuals may not illegally provide virtual currency-related services to domestic entities in any form.
Stablecoins pegged to legal tender have effectively performed part of the functions of legal tender in circulation. Without the legal approval of relevant departments, no domestic or foreign entity or individual may issue stablecoins pegged to the renminbi abroad.
(2) Real-world asset tokenization refers to the use of encryption technology and distributed ledger or similar technology to convert ownership, income rights, etc. of assets into tokens (certificates) or other rights and bonds that have the characteristics of tokens (certificates), and carry out issuance and trading activities.
Conducting real-world asset tokenization activities in the domestic market, as well as providing related intermediary and information technology services, suspected of illegal activities such as illegal issuance of token vouchers, unauthorized public issuance of securities, illegal operation of securities and futures business, and illegal fundraising, should be prohibited; except for related business activities conducted based on specific financial infrastructures with legal approval from the competent business authorities. Foreign entities and individuals may not illegally provide real-world asset tokenization-related services to domestic entities in any form.
2. Improve the working mechanism
(3) Departmental collaboration. The People's Bank of China, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the Financial Regulatory Bureau, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, improves the working mechanism and strengthens coordination with the Central Cyberspace Administration, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate to form a joint effort in guiding various regions to carry out risk prevention and disposal work related to illegal financial activities concerning virtual currencies.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, the People's Bank of China, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the Financial Regulatory Bureau, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, and other departments, has improved the working mechanism, and strengthened coordination with the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Supreme People's Court, and the Supreme People's Procuratorate to form a joint effort in guiding various regions to carry out risk prevention and disposal work related to illegal financial activities concerning real-world asset tokenization.
(4) Strengthen local implementation. Provincial-level people's governments are responsible for the risk prevention and disposal work related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization within their administrative regions, specifically led by local financial management departments, with participation from branch institutions and dispatched agencies of State Council financial management departments, as well as telecommunications authorities, public security, market regulation, and other departments, in cooperation with the Cyberspace Administration, people's courts, and people's procuratorates to establish a normalized working mechanism, effectively coordinate with the relevant working mechanisms of central departments, form a working pattern of central-local collaboration and combination of different sectors, actively prevent and properly handle risks related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, and maintain economic financial order and social stability.
3. Strengthen risk monitoring, prevention, and disposal
(5) Strengthen risk monitoring. The People's Bank of China, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, and the Cyberspace Administration should continuously improve monitoring technology means and system support, strengthen cross-departmental data comprehensive assessment and sharing, establish and improve information sharing and cross-validation mechanisms, and timely grasp the risk situation of virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization activities. Provincial-level people's governments should fully play the role of local monitoring and early warning mechanisms. Local financial management departments, together with branch institutions and dispatched agencies of the State Council's financial management departments, as well as the Cyberspace Administration, public security, and market regulation departments, should effectively connect online monitoring, offline investigations, and fund monitoring, efficiently and accurately identify virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization-related activities, timely share risk information, and improve the rapid response mechanism for warning information transmission, verification, and disposal.
(6) Strengthen the management of financial, intermediary, and technical service institutions. Financial institutions (including non-bank payment institutions) must not provide account opening, fund transfer, and clearing services for virtual currency-related business activities, must not issue and sell financial products related to virtual currencies, must not include virtual currencies and related financial products in the scope of collateral, must not engage in insurance business related to virtual currencies or include virtual currencies in the scope of insurance liability, and must enhance risk monitoring, promptly reporting any illegal issues to relevant departments. Financial institutions (including non-bank payment institutions) must not provide custody, clearing, and settlement services for unauthorized real-world asset tokenization-related businesses and related financial products. Relevant intermediary institutions and information technology service institutions must not provide intermediary, technical, and other services for unauthorized real-world asset tokenization-related businesses and related financial products.
(7) Strengthen the management of internet information content and access. Internet enterprises must not provide online operating venues, commercial displays, marketing promotions, paid traffic diversion, and other services for activities related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization. Upon discovering illegal issues, they should promptly report to relevant departments and provide technical support and assistance for related investigations and inquiries. The Cyberspace Administration, telecommunications authorities, and public security departments should promptly close and handle websites, mobile applications (including mini-programs), and public accounts engaged in activities related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization according to clues provided by financial management departments.
(8) Strengthen the registration and advertising management of operating entities. Market regulatory departments should strengthen the management of the registration of operating entities. The registered names and business scopes of enterprises and individual business owners must not contain terms or content such as 'virtual currency,' 'virtual assets,' 'encrypted currency,' 'encrypted assets,' 'stablecoins,' 'real-world asset tokenization,' 'RWA,' etc. Market regulatory departments, together with financial management departments, should strengthen the regulation of advertisements related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization according to the law, and promptly investigate related illegal advertisements.
(9) Continue to rectify virtual currency 'mining' activities. The National Development and Reform Commission, together with relevant departments, strictly controls virtual currency 'mining' activities and continuously promotes the rectification work of virtual currency 'mining' activities. Provincial-level people's governments bear overall responsibility for the 'mining' rectification work within their administrative regions, and according to the requirements of the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments (on the rectification of virtual currency 'mining' activities) (Fa Gai Yun [2021] No. 1283) and the (Guiding Catalogue for Industrial Structure Adjustment (2024 Edition)), fully investigate, assess, and shut down existing virtual currency 'mining' projects, prohibit the establishment of new 'mining' projects, and prohibit 'mining machine' manufacturers from providing 'mining machine' sales and other services within the territory.
(10) Strictly crack down on related illegal financial activities. Upon discovering clues to illegal financial activities related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, local financial management departments, branch institutions and dispatched agencies of State Council financial management departments, and other relevant departments should promptly investigate, verify, handle, and seriously pursue the legal responsibilities of relevant units and individuals, and if a crime is suspected, transfer it to judicial authorities for handling.
(11) Strictly crack down on related illegal activities. The Ministry of Public Security, the People's Bank of China, the State Administration for Market Regulation, the Financial Regulatory Bureau, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and other departments, as well as judicial and prosecutorial organs, should severely crack down on illegal activities such as fraud, money laundering, illegal business operations, pyramid schemes, and illegal fundraising related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, as well as related illegal activities conducted under the pretext of virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization.
(12) Strengthen industry self-discipline management. Relevant industry associations should enhance member management and policy publicity, advocate and urge member units to resist illegal financial activities related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization. For member units that violate regulatory policies and industry self-discipline rules, punishment should be imposed in accordance with relevant self-discipline management regulations. Relying on various industry infrastructures to carry out risk monitoring related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, timely report problem clues to relevant departments.
4. Implement strict supervision over domestic entities conducting related businesses abroad
(13) Without the legal approval of relevant departments, domestic entities and their controlled foreign entities may not issue virtual currencies abroad.
(14) Domestic entities directly or indirectly conducting real-world asset tokenization business in the form of foreign debt abroad, or engaging in asset securitization-like business based on domestic asset ownership, income rights, etc. (hereinafter collectively referred to as domestic rights) should be subject to strict regulation by the National Development and Reform Commission, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, and other relevant departments according to the principle of 'same business, same risk, same rules.' For other forms of real-world asset tokenization business conducted abroad by domestic entities based on domestic rights, it should be regulated by the China Securities Regulatory Commission together with relevant departments according to their responsibilities. No entity or individual may engage in the aforementioned business without the consent or filing of relevant departments.
(15) The overseas subsidiaries and branches of domestic financial institutions providing real-world asset tokenization-related services abroad must do so cautiously and in accordance with the law, equip professional personnel and systems, effectively prevent business risks, strictly implement client admission, appropriateness management, anti-money laundering, and other requirements, and incorporate them into the compliance and risk management system of domestic financial institutions. Intermediary institutions and information technology service institutions providing services for domestic entities conducting real-world asset tokenization business abroad in the form of foreign debt, or based on domestic rights, must strictly comply with laws and regulations, establish and improve relevant compliance internal control systems according to regulatory requirements, and strengthen business and risk control, reporting the status of related business to relevant management departments for approval or filing.
5. Strengthen organization and implementation
(16) Strengthen organizational leadership and overall coordination. All departments and regions should attach great importance to the risk prevention work related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, strengthen organizational leadership, clarify work responsibilities, and form a long-term work mechanism of central coordination, local implementation, and shared responsibility, maintain a high-pressure stance, dynamically monitor risks, effectively and orderly prevent and resolve risks, protect the property safety of the people in accordance with the law, and strive to maintain economic financial order and social stability.
(17) Conduct extensive publicity and education. All departments, regions, and industry associations should make full use of various media and communication channels to promote the illegality and harmfulness of virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization-related businesses through legal policy interpretation, analysis of typical cases, and investment risk education, fully alerting the public to potential risks and enhancing their awareness and ability to identify risks.
6. Legal liability
(18) Violating the provisions of this notice to engage in illegal financial activities related to virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization, as well as providing services for virtual currencies and real-world asset tokenization-related businesses, will be punished according to relevant regulations; if a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility will be pursued according to law. For domestic entities and individuals who knowingly or should have known that foreign entities illegally provided virtual currency and real-world asset tokenization-related services to the domestic market but still assisted them, relevant responsibilities will be pursued according to law; if a crime is constituted, criminal responsibility will be pursued according to law.
(19) Any unit or individual investing in virtual currencies, real-world asset tokens, and related financial products that violates public order and good customs shall have their related civil legal acts invalidated, and any resulting losses shall be borne by themselves; those suspected of disrupting financial order and endangering financial security shall be dealt with by relevant departments in accordance with the law.
This notice shall take effect from the date of publication. The notice from the People's Bank of China and ten other departments (on further preventing and addressing the risks of speculation in virtual currency transactions) (Yin Fa [2021] No. 237) is simultaneously abolished.
People's Bank of China
National Development and Reform Commission
Ministry of Industry and Information Technology
Ministry of Public Security
State Administration for Market Regulation
Financial Regulatory Bureau
China Securities Regulatory Commission
State Administration of Foreign Exchange
February 6, 2026