New proposed rules could rock China’s blockchain industry. Here’s what they mean

The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) has released a set of draft regulations that, in its current form, promises to narrow the scope of blockchain-based services across the country.

The proposed regulations were opened up for public perusal last Friday, with the department soliciting suggestions until November 2. Among other things, the set of 23 articles requires that blockchain users go through real-name registration, and service providers take responsibility for censoring content as well as saving user data for potential government inspection. The laws would apply to all “blockchain service providers,” whether organizations or individuals, that operate in the PRC.

But that’s not all. Below, we explain in more detail other implications for China’s burgeoning blockchain industry, which has already seen an increasingly strict clampdown on cryptocurrency trading platforms over the last year. If the new rules come to pass, blockchain as a whole – known for its decentralized nature and anonymity – could see a landscape shift in China.

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