Regulations on the management of virtual currency in China
On June 28, 2009, the Ministry of culture and the Ministry of Commerce jointly issued the "notice on strengthening the management of virtual currency in online games", which made it clear that virtual currency is expressed in the form of prepaid recharge card, prepaid amount or points of online games, but does not include game props obtained in game activities; Virtual currency shall not be used to pay for, purchase physical procts or exchange for any procts and services of other enterprises< The following is the full text of the Circular of the Ministry of culture and the Ministry of Commerce:
the Circular of the Ministry of culture and the Ministry of Commerce on strengthening the management of virtual currency in online games
the cultural departments (bureaus) and commercial departments (bureaus) of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government, the Cultural Bureau and commercial bureau of Xinjiang proction and Construction Corps, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and Chongqing Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region Cultural market administrative law enforcement corps:
with the rapid development of online games, online game virtual currency is widely used in online game business services. The virtual currency of online games not only promotes the development of online game instry, but also brings new economic and social problems. Mainly reflected in: first, the lack of protection of user rights and interests; Second, market behavior lacks supervision; Third, the online game virtual currency in the use of disputes
in order to standardize the operation order of online game market, according to the spirit of Interim Provisions on Internet culture management, notice on Further Strengthening the management of Internet cafes and online games (Wen Shi Fa [2007] No. 10) and notice on standardizing the operation order of online games and banning the use of online game gambling (Gong Tong Zi [2007] No. 3), etc, With the consent of the people's Bank of China and other departments, the notice on strengthening the management of virtual currency of online games is as follows
It is illegal to issue virtual currency privately
According to Article 29 of the regulations of the people's Republic of China on the administration of RMB, no unit or indivial is allowed to print or sell token tickets to replace RMB in circulation on the market In addition, the "emergency notice of the State Council Office for rectifying unhealthy tendencies in the instry, the State Economic and Trade Commission and the people's Bank of China on prohibiting the issuance and use of various token certificates (cards)" also strictly prohibited similar issues
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virtual currency refers to non real currency. Well known virtual currencies, such as online currency of Internet company, q-coin of Tencent company, q-point and voucher of Shanda company, micro currency launched by Sina (used for micro games, Sina reading, etc.), chivalrous Yuanbao (used for chivalrous road game), silver grain (used for bixue Qingtian game), and popular digital currencies in 2013 include bitcoin, Laite coin, infinite coin, quark coin, zeta coin, etc Barbecue coins, pennies (Internet), invisible gold bars, red coins, prime coins. At present, hundreds of digital currencies are issued all over the world. Popular in the circle & quot; The legend of "bitcoin, Wright silver, infinite copper, pennies aluminum"
market formation
the Internet has led to the emergence of a new market, which is a virtual market based on cyberspace. The Internet provides a lot of communication places for consumers, and also provides business market for enterprises. Enterprises must change from proct centered to service centered to customer centered. With the development of computer artificial intelligence technology and database technology, enterprises can conveniently collect customers' information, understand customers' needs in time, change business strategies and grasp economic arteries in real time
With the rapid development of computer and network communication technology, the application of Internet technology has graally penetrated into various fields of human activities, and the unlimited business opportunities that it contains make businesses turn their eyes to e-commerce. E-commerce is penetrating into all aspects of social and economic life at a speed that people can hardly imaginethe traditional finance is also closely watching this irresistible trend of global economic integration and networking. As a result, value-added services take art as the selling point and can be regarded as commodities; The sword in the game is not a brand-new financial services business philosophy - e-finance came into being
from the historical development process, to understand e-finance, we must start from the electronic finance and e-commerce. The so-called e-financialization means that financial enterprises adopt modern communication, computer, network and other information technology means in addition to Internet technology to improve the work efficiency of traditional financial service business, rece operating costs, realize the automation of financial business processing, informatization of financial enterprise management and scientific decision-making, and provide customers with faster and more convenient services, And then enhance the financial enterprise is the behavior of market competitive advantage
e-finance is a transcendence of financial electronization. Different from the electronic finance, the main technical basis of e-finance operation is the increasingly perfect Internet technology. Due to the characteristics of global connectivity, openness, quickness and low marginal cost of Internet technology, e-finance strengthens the restructuring and innovation of financial services business based on Internet technology, so that customers are free from the restrictions of business hours and places, and enjoy all kinds of high-quality and low-cost services provided by financial enterprises anytime and anywhere
with the development of Internet, the form of money is becoming more virtual, and there is an electronic money that only exists in the form of electronic signal
reference source: Network: virtual currency
Internet currency of Internet company, QQ currency of Tencent company, q-point, voucher of Shanda company, micro currency launched by Sina (used for micro games, Sina reading, etc.), chivalrous Yuanbao (used for chivalrous road game), and silver pattern (used for bixue Qingtian game)
network virtual currency can be roughly divided into:
the first category is familiar game currency. In the era of stand-alone games, the protagonist accumulates money by knocking down the enemy, entering the gambling house to win money, and using these to buy Herbs and equipment, but it can only be used in his own game console. At that time, there was no "market" between players. Since the establishment of Internet portal and community, the realization of game networking, virtual currency has a "financial market", players can trade game currency
the second type is the special currency issued by the portal website or instant messaging service provider, which is used to purchase the services in the website. The most widely used is Tencent's q-coin, which can be used to purchase membership, QQ show and other value-added services
the third kind of virtual currency on the Internet, such as bitcoin (BTC), Wright currency (LTC), etc. bitcoin is an electronic currency proced by open-source P2P software. Some people also translate bitcoin as "bitcoin", which is a kind of network virtual currency. It is mainly used for Internet financial investment, and can also be directly used in daily life as a new currency
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strict law enforcement:
(23) enterprises engaging in online game virtual currency issuance and trading services without permission shall be investigated and dealt with by cultural administrative departments at or above the provincial level in accordance with the Interim Provisions on Internet culture management
(24) for the online game virtual currency issuing and trading service enterprises that violate the requirements of this circular, the cultural administrative department and the competent commercial department shall notify them to rectify within a time limit. Those who fail to rectify within the time limit shall be investigated and dealt with by relevant departments according to law (25) establish a coordination mechanism for the management of virtual currency in online games, and intensify the crackdown on illegal activities such as "number theft", "private service", "plug-in", illegal profits, money laundering, etc. All departments should regularly communicate, coordinate and cooperate with each other, timely report the relevant situation, and do a good job in the management of online game virtual currency within their respective responsibilities (26) the online game virtual currency issued by the online game operation enterprise shall not coincide with the name of the props in the game. The administrative provisions for props in online games shall be formulated separately by the cultural administrative department of the State Council in conjunction with relevant departmentssource: Internet virtual currency
1、 (1) the virtual currency of online games mentioned in this Notice refers to the virtual currency issued by online game operators, which is purchased directly or indirectly by game users using legal tender in a certain proportion, and exists outside the game program and stored in the server provided by online game operators in the form of electromagnetic recording, And a virtual exchange tool expressed in specific digital units. Online game virtual currency is used to exchange the online game services provided by the issuing enterprise within a specified scope and within a specified time. It is expressed in the form of prepaid recharge card, prepaid amount or points, but does not include the game props obtained in the game activities
(2) cultural administrative departments should strictly enforce market access and strengthen the management of online game virtual currency issuers and online game virtual currency trading service providers. Those engaged in the business of "online game virtual currency issuing service" and "online game virtual currency trading service" shall be managed in accordance with the "decision of the State Council on Setting Administrative License for administrative examination and approval items that really need to be retained" (Order No. 412 of the State Council) and the "Interim Provisions on the administration of Internet culture". All enterprises providing the above two services must meet the relevant conditions for the establishment of operational Internet cultural units, apply to the provincial cultural administrative department where the enterprises are located, and report to the Ministry of culture for examination and approval after the initial examination by the provincial cultural administrative department“ Online game virtual currency issuing enterprises refer to online game operation enterprises that issue and provide virtual currency service“ "Online game virtual currency transaction service enterprise" refers to the enterprise that provides platform service for online game virtual currency transaction among users. The same enterprise shall not operate the above two businesses at the same time
(3) in addition to submitting relevant materials in accordance with the law, enterprises applying to engage in the business of "online game virtual currency issuance service" must submit the form of virtual currency expression, scope of issuance, unit purchase price, return method at the time of service termination, user purchase method (including cash, bank card, online payment, etc.) in the business development report User rights protection measures, technical security measures, etc< (4) engaging in the business of "online game virtual currency trading service" must comply with the relevant provisions of the competent department of Commerce on e-commerce (platform) services. In addition to the materials submitted in accordance with the law, such enterprises should submit the service (platform) mode, user purchase method (including cash, bank card, online payment and other purchase methods), user rights protection measures, user account binding with real name bank account, technical security measures, etc. in the business development report< (5) enterprises that have engaged in online game virtual currency issuing or trading services shall apply to the cultural administration department for relevant business operations within three months from the date of printing and distributing this circular. Those who fail to apply within the time limit shall be investigated and dealt with by the cultural administrative department in accordance with the Interim Provisions on the administration of Internet culture. A of the approval document from the cultural administration department shall be sent to the Ministry of Commerce and the people's Bank of China< (6) online game operators should issue appropriate amount of online game virtual currency according to their own business conditions and proct operations. Malicious issuance for the purpose of occupying prepaid funds is strictly prohibited. The total amount of virtual currency issued by online game operation enterprises shall be submitted to the provincial cultural administrative department of the place where the enterprise is located on a quarterly basis
(7) except for legal currency purchase, online game operators shall not provide online game virtual currency to users in any other way. When issuing online game virtual currency, online game operators must keep users' recharge records. The storage period of the record shall not be less than 180 days from the date of user recharge< (8) the use of online game virtual currency is limited to the virtual services provided by the issuing enterprise itself, and shall not be used to pay for or purchase physical procts or exchange for any procts or services of other enterprises< (9) online game operators should take necessary measures and complaint handling proceres to protect the legitimate rights and interests of users, and explain them in a prominent position on the website where the enterprise provides services to users
(x) in case of disputes in the use of virtual currency in online games, the user shall present a valid personal identity card consistent with the registered identity information. After verifying the identity of users, online game operators should provide virtual currency recharge and transfer records, and handle them according to the complaint handling proceres. When the legitimate rights and interests of users are infringed, online game operators should actively assist in obtaining evidence and coordinating solutions< (11) if an online game operator plans to terminate the provision of its procts and services, it shall make an announcement 60 days in advance. When the service is terminated, for the virtual currency that the user has purchased but has not used, the online game operator must return it to the user in legal currency or other ways accepted by the user
if the online game service is interrupted continuously for 30 days e to the stop of service access, technical failure and other reasons of the online game operation enterprise, it shall be deemed to be terminated
(12) online game operation enterprises shall not change the unit purchase price of online game virtual currency. When new types of virtual currency are issued, they shall report to the cultural administration department for record according to the materials listed in Article 3 of this circular
(XIII) if online game operators do not support online game virtual currency transactions, they should take technical measures to prohibit the transfer function of online game virtual currency between user accounts
(14) when providing online game virtual currency related transaction services, online game virtual currency transaction service enterprises must require sellers to register with their real names by using valid identity documents, and require them to bind domestic bank accounts consistent with the real name registration information. Online game virtual currency transaction service enterprises must keep relevant transaction records and accounting records among users, and the retention period shall not be less than 180 days from the date of transaction< (15) online game virtual currency trading service enterprises should establish accountability system and technical measures for illegal transactions, strictly screen the authenticity of trading information, and prohibit illegal transactions. Knowing that the virtual currency of online games is illegally obtained or reported and verified, the false transaction information should be deleted and the transaction service should be terminated in time< (16) online game virtual currency trading service enterprises shall not provide trading services for minors
(17) online game virtual currency issuing enterprises and transaction service enterprises should actively take measures to protect personal information security. When relevant departments investigate according to law, they must actively cooperate and provide relevant records
(18) if online game operators provide virtual currency transfer services between users, they should take technical measures to keep the transfer records, and the relevant records should be kept for no less than 180 days< (19) all localities should cooperate with the public security organs to strictly punish online games with gambling color in accordance with the requirements of the notice on regulating the operation order of online games and banning gambling with online games (GTZ [2007] No. 3) issued by the Ministry of public security, the Ministry of culture and other departments, We will severely crack down on the illegal and criminal activities of gambling by using the virtual currency of online games
(20) online game operators are not allowed to allocate game props or virtual currency by drawing lots, betting, random selection and other accidental means on the premise that users directly invest cash or virtual currency
(21) online game virtual currency issuing and trading service enterprises should actively cooperate with the management department and take technical measures to crack down on "number theft", "private service" and "plug-in"
(22) the Ministry of culture shall notify the people's Bank of China of online payment services provided on the "private service" and "plug-in" websites of online games recognized by the Ministry of culture< (23) the cultural administrative departments at or above the provincial level shall investigate and deal with the enterprises that engage in the issuance and trading services of online game virtual currency without permission in accordance with the Interim Provisions on the administration of Internet culture
(24) for the online game virtual currency issuing and trading service enterprises that violate the requirements of this circular, the cultural administrative department and the competent commercial department shall notify them to rectify within a time limit. Those who fail to rectify within the time limit shall be investigated and dealt with by relevant departments according to law
(25) establish a coordination mechanism for the management of virtual currency in online games, and intensify the crackdown on illegal activities such as "number theft", "private service", "plug-in", illegal profits, money laundering, etc. All departments should regularly communicate, coordinate and cooperate with each other, timely report the relevant situation, and do a good job in the management of online game virtual currency within their respective responsibilities
(26) the online game virtual currency issued by the online game operation enterprise shall not coincide with the name of the props in the game. The administrative provisions for props in online games shall be formulated separately by the cultural administrative department of the State Council in conjunction with relevant departments
notice is hereby given<
Ministry of culture
Ministry of Commerce
June 4, 2009
There is no law in China to ban bitcoin, so it is not illegal to mine and earn bitcoin
it is not illegal to buy bitcoin in China. In 2013, five ministries and commissions jointly issued the bitcoin risk notice, which states that although bitcoin does not belong to legal tender and is not legally compulsory, people can freely participate in bitcoin trading activities when they voluntarily undertake risks
"notice" clearly defines the nature of bitcoin, and holds that bitcoin is not issued by the monetary authority, has no monetary attributes such as legal compensation and mandatory, and is not a real currency. In terms of nature, bitcoin is a specific virtual commodity, which does not have the same legal status as currency and cannot and should not be used as currency in the market
however, as a kind of commodity trading on the Internet, ordinary people have the freedom to participate in bitcoin trading at their own risk
the notice requires that at this stage, financial institutions and Payment institutions shall not price procts or services with bitcoin, buy or sell bitcoin as a central counterparties, underwrite insurance business related to bitcoin or include bitcoin in the scope of insurance liability, and provide other bitcoin related services to customers directly or indirectly, Including: providing bitcoin registration, trading, clearing, settlement and other services for customers; Accept bitcoin or use bitcoin as a payment and settlement tool; Carry out bitcoin and RMB and foreign currency exchange services; Carry out bitcoin storage, custody, mortgage and other services; Issuing financial procts related to bitcoin; Take bitcoin as the investment target of trust, fund, etc
in order to avoid over hype of virtual commodities such as bitcoin in the name of "virtual currency" and damage the public interest and the legal tender status of RMB, the circular requires financial institutions and Payment institutions to correctly use the concept of currency in their daily work, pay attention to strengthening the ecation of the public's knowledge of currency, and correctly understand the concept of currency The concept of correctly treating virtual commodity and virtual currency, rational investment, reasonable control of investment risk, and maintenance of their own property security should be included in the content of financial knowledge popularization activities, so as to guide the public to establish a correct concept of currency and investment
source of reference: People's website bitcoin network virtual currency
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