China’s Bitcoin Ban: Will Relentless US Pressure Make Beijing Dig for Satoshi’s Gold Again?

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Comrades, the winds of history blow dust in every face, and lately, that dust smells a whole lot like overheated graphics cards and patriotic ambition. The United States, that capitalist juggernaut, has seized the throne of Bitcoin mining, puffing out its chest while China—once the mighty lord of the hashrate—sits in official silence, pondering the cosmic joke that is international trade and technology competition. Oh, how the mighty have traded their pickaxes for red tape.

The Americans now reign as crypto miners-in-chief. Cambridgeshire scribes, with their spectacles and spreadsheets, announce that Uncle Sam commands an astonishing 75.4% of the world’s reported hashrate. Dreamers and bureaucrats alike look eastward, squinting through smog and censorship, and wonder: will China pick up its virtual shovel once more, or sit back and sip tea brewed with schadenfreude?

Let’s not forget: China, land of The Great Wall and even greater workaround, once extracted 75% of world Bitcoin from the bowels of its own territory, fueled by cheap gigawatts and even cheaper labor. But when the party said “no crypto, comrades!”—they meant it. (Sort of.)

It began with the National Development and Reform Commission’s 2019 crusade against undesirable industries. (Apparently, mining crypto was almost as wicked as writing seditious poetry.) Four provinces soon shut the whole thing down, energy concerns cited with faces as straight as a surveyor’s rule. But as with most things “forbidden,” the Chinese found crafty ways to keep the computers humming. Like university students hiding vodka bottles in bookcases, miners scurried into the shadows. By July 2024, the analysts admit, China still snakes out 15% of global hashrate—though presumably now with flashlights and apologies ready for every knock at the door.🕵️‍♂️💡

7/8

Bottom lines:
1. 15%+ hashrate still comes from China

2. If you have 200-500 miners and want to do renewable-energy mining, you’re welcome

3. This is particularly in Inner Mongolia, the Texas of China, which has a lot of wasted renewable power they want to monetize

— Daniel Batten (@DSBatten) June 6, 2024

“Despite the official ban, the infrastructure is already in place: offshore, cross-border, probably even under grandma’s mattress. As crypto adoption surges and the stars-and-stripes grows smug, Beijing must at least be tempted to stage a quiet comeback—even if it requires the sort of deniable operations usually reserved for international ping-pong tournaments,” Nic Puckrin, Co-founder of the Coin Bureau, told BeInCrypto. 

Let’s face it, China is no stranger to double lives. It may frown upon decentralized finance in public, but in the alleys of industrial policy, the ASIC assembly lines are still whirring, and shipments head west across the Pacific like clockwork. So, while the US counts its riches and measures its tariffs—half hoping China will suffer a blue screen of economic death—Beijing just sharpens its silicon, quietly exporting the picks and axes for America’s digital gold rush. Talk about selling shovels during a gold rush! ⛏️💸

The trade war only adds spicy uncertainty. If the US keeps adding tariffs the way a cook adds chili to Sichuan noodles, American miners may soon find costs climbing like a monkey chasing the moon. Take it from Puckrin: the friction may be just enough to prod China to reassess, if not send out an official memo punctuated with solemn stamps and absolutely no emojis.

“It’s unlikely China will make a public U-turn on its crypto mining and trading ban anytime soon. However, with US-based miners dominating the hashrate, China is bound to be watching from behind the curtains, quietly plotting, maybe even taking notes with invisible ink,” Puckrin told BeInCrypto.

Yet Beijing has more than one card up the dusty sleeve. Why merely mine Bitcoin when you can mine international influence with an e-CNY, polished on all sides and ready for the world stage? As Americans build farms, China crafts central bank digital currencies—turning the digital yuan into a tool for economic judo. Forget Satoshi’s whitepaper; in Zhongnanhai, the only acceptable whitepaper comes stamped with the People’s Bank of China seal.

“In truth, comrades, despite the ban on Bitcoin mining, China wades deep in digital asset waters through the development of the digital yuan. The global de-dollarization movement gives this crusade an energy all its own,” Wanchain CEO Temujin Louie told BeInCrypto.

America’s obsession with tariffs may in fact goose China into strengthening its yuan, sidestepping the greenback in international settlements—Bitcoin or not. Louie, forever the sage, hints that Beijing doesn’t adjust policy just to keep up with American swings; the plan was always nuanced, relentless, and about three steps ahead—like a chess grandmaster who also happens to rig the board. ♟️

“Strategy—not tariffs—will shape any turn in Chinese policy. Watch not what is said, but what the old dragon does with its claws,” Louie added, practically winking audibly through the wire.

Consider the other cracks in the great wall of policy: despite choking domestic use, China has been seen settling oil trades in Bitcoin—with Russia in tow—on gray markets that sound like scenes from a John le Carré novel. Even Venezuela has filled its tankers with digital gold, as the US dollar finds itself slowly ghosted by sanctioned economies.

Russia and China are settling oil trades in BTC. I’ve heard first hand accounts of similar transactions with Venezuela. Full tankers are settled in BTC on the “grey” market. The U.S. Government crossed the Rubicon in 2022 by seizing Russian assets at the Federal Reserve and…

— Jonathan Hamel (@jhamel) April 9, 2025

“As the dollar transforms into Uncle Sam’s favorite weapon, the world gets bored and swipes right for digital assets. More and more, countries like China and Russia use Bitcoin for the stuff that matters—oil, energy, and dodging paperwork. The trend is obvious, unless you’re a politician with your head stuck in—well, let’s just say—policy memos.” Puckrin told BeInCrypto.

By all accounts, the shadow crypto economy in China has plans for a growth spurt this year. And it’s not because Beijing wants to out-mine America—it’s about de-dollarization, global influence, and maybe a little bit of poetic revenge.

Interpret Chinese intentions not by what’s said from the pulpits of state media, but by the quiet whir of rigs, the import of ASICs, and the flow of digital yuan along new Silk Roads in cyberspace. The next move belongs to the chess player who never publicly celebrates his gambits—and always has a few pawns more than you thought. 😏🪙

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2025-05-07 03:53