China has recently surpassed the US as the world's biggest economy, and
although China has had problems with its shadow banking system, corruption and
more, it has shown to be surprisingly open about cryptocurrencies. This may seem
surprising coming from a country that is communist, at least on paper. In order
to get better understanding of how the Chinese are reasoning about this
topic, here is an interview with Roland Sun (孙铭), a leading cryptocurrency
lawyer in China, the head legal expert for notable Chinese crypto storage
company ZAFED and the Chinese crypto crowdfunding platform DACx. I’m a Chinese
lawyer, practicing Chinese laws for more than 12 years. I have extensive hobbies
ranging from economics, philosophy, football to PC games. And I’m also pretty
much interested in staying abreast with the frontiers of scientific development.
I learned Bitcoin from some media in the second half of 2012. As an
amateur of Austrian School of economics, I became curious about such a currency
with non-elastic supply, as Bitcoin was called “virtual gold” by someone
due to the limit of its quantity. Since then, I made numerous researches on the
internet and read through many introductory and analytical articles about
Bitcoin (including tutorials of Bitcoin wallet installation and
even mining). It took me weeks to comprehend the underlying Bitcoin
protocol and blockchain technology and to tell [the difference] from
Bitcoin as a kind of currency. Seeing Bitcoin technically secure and
economically tenable (or at least plausible), I bought my first bitcoin in late
2012. The price was just beginning to skyrocket from approximately US$10 at that
time. As a lawyer, I advise startup companies on legal and regulatory issues.
Many companies engaging in Bitcoin or blockchain technology-related business
often look to have my advice in order to avoid legal trouble. The legal
landscape is still vague in China, just like in any other jurisdiction. However,
China’s regulatory environment in this area is generally much more relaxed than
that of the US. In my view, China is one of the most suitable jurisdictions
around the world where entrepreneurs can experiment on many pioneering business
models in relation to DACs and cryptocurrencies, while most of them are clearly
or implicitly banned in the US. The government in China is generally tolerant,
so long as your business is not designed as a fraudulent scheme. Among others,
Bitcoin and like cryptocurrencies have been officially recognized as lawful
virtual commodities and are therefore OK to trade, which explains why there are
so many exchanges in China where spots and even futures and other derivatives
are traded. The only restriction imposed here is to block financial
institutions and third-party payment processors from aiding cryptocurrency
businesses (yet there are still many loopholes in reality to circumvent or even
penetrate that restriction). And for cryptocoin crowdfunding or crowd sales, it
is even restriction free in China. That means the initiators usually don’t have
to worry about facing the charge of “illegal securities issuance,” as they are
likely to suffer in the US. The blockchain technology underlying each
cryptocurrency. It creates a real P2P network where everyone can transact with
everyone else on an efficient and secure basis. The coming years will definitely
witness extensive application of the blockchain technology. It can be applied
to, among other things, the financial sectors to dispense with those traditional
intermediaries and centers, and accordingly both lower the costs and improve
liquidity. The blockchain tech will be widely used everywhere in [the] near
[future], since it really adds value to most industries in terms of cost-
efficiency and trustworthiness. Old business models will phase out with the
introduction of blockchain tech as people will become decreasingly dependent on
intermediaries and centers to transact with each other. Yet Bitcoin will
probably have another story. It remains unforeseeable whether Bitcoin
will be well-received by the mainstream. Regulatory barriers, price volatility
and accessibility are problems that hinder Bitcoin from evolving toward a
kind of currency as it aims to be. While Bitcoin claims itself as a
virtual gold, gold serves as rather an asset than a currency nowadays. People
purchase gold typically for investment rather than use as currency. Bitcoin
could share the same fate unless the underlying protocol would be significantly
updated to accommodate more commercial applications. To fluctuate between US$200
and US$800, all depending on whether its commercial applications would mature.
BitShares, Ethereum, Play Shares and Music Shares.
although China has had problems with its shadow banking system, corruption and
more, it has shown to be surprisingly open about cryptocurrencies. This may seem
surprising coming from a country that is communist, at least on paper. In order
to get better understanding of how the Chinese are reasoning about this
topic, here is an interview with Roland Sun (孙铭), a leading cryptocurrency
lawyer in China, the head legal expert for notable Chinese crypto storage
company ZAFED and the Chinese crypto crowdfunding platform DACx. I’m a Chinese
lawyer, practicing Chinese laws for more than 12 years. I have extensive hobbies
ranging from economics, philosophy, football to PC games. And I’m also pretty
much interested in staying abreast with the frontiers of scientific development.
I learned Bitcoin from some media in the second half of 2012. As an
amateur of Austrian School of economics, I became curious about such a currency
with non-elastic supply, as Bitcoin was called “virtual gold” by someone
due to the limit of its quantity. Since then, I made numerous researches on the
internet and read through many introductory and analytical articles about
Bitcoin (including tutorials of Bitcoin wallet installation and
even mining). It took me weeks to comprehend the underlying Bitcoin
protocol and blockchain technology and to tell [the difference] from
Bitcoin as a kind of currency. Seeing Bitcoin technically secure and
economically tenable (or at least plausible), I bought my first bitcoin in late
2012. The price was just beginning to skyrocket from approximately US$10 at that
time. As a lawyer, I advise startup companies on legal and regulatory issues.
Many companies engaging in Bitcoin or blockchain technology-related business
often look to have my advice in order to avoid legal trouble. The legal
landscape is still vague in China, just like in any other jurisdiction. However,
China’s regulatory environment in this area is generally much more relaxed than
that of the US. In my view, China is one of the most suitable jurisdictions
around the world where entrepreneurs can experiment on many pioneering business
models in relation to DACs and cryptocurrencies, while most of them are clearly
or implicitly banned in the US. The government in China is generally tolerant,
so long as your business is not designed as a fraudulent scheme. Among others,
Bitcoin and like cryptocurrencies have been officially recognized as lawful
virtual commodities and are therefore OK to trade, which explains why there are
so many exchanges in China where spots and even futures and other derivatives
are traded. The only restriction imposed here is to block financial
institutions and third-party payment processors from aiding cryptocurrency
businesses (yet there are still many loopholes in reality to circumvent or even
penetrate that restriction). And for cryptocoin crowdfunding or crowd sales, it
is even restriction free in China. That means the initiators usually don’t have
to worry about facing the charge of “illegal securities issuance,” as they are
likely to suffer in the US. The blockchain technology underlying each
cryptocurrency. It creates a real P2P network where everyone can transact with
everyone else on an efficient and secure basis. The coming years will definitely
witness extensive application of the blockchain technology. It can be applied
to, among other things, the financial sectors to dispense with those traditional
intermediaries and centers, and accordingly both lower the costs and improve
liquidity. The blockchain tech will be widely used everywhere in [the] near
[future], since it really adds value to most industries in terms of cost-
efficiency and trustworthiness. Old business models will phase out with the
introduction of blockchain tech as people will become decreasingly dependent on
intermediaries and centers to transact with each other. Yet Bitcoin will
probably have another story. It remains unforeseeable whether Bitcoin
will be well-received by the mainstream. Regulatory barriers, price volatility
and accessibility are problems that hinder Bitcoin from evolving toward a
kind of currency as it aims to be. While Bitcoin claims itself as a
virtual gold, gold serves as rather an asset than a currency nowadays. People
purchase gold typically for investment rather than use as currency. Bitcoin
could share the same fate unless the underlying protocol would be significantly
updated to accommodate more commercial applications. To fluctuate between US$200
and US$800, all depending on whether its commercial applications would mature.
BitShares, Ethereum, Play Shares and Music Shares.
