The essential attribute of virtual currency business activities;
1. Virtual currency does not have the same legal status as legal tender. For example, virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum and TEDA have no legal compensation and should not and cannot be circulated in the market as currency.
2. Activities related to virtual currency, such as legal tender and virtual currency exchange business, virtual currency exchange business, buying and selling virtual currency as a central counterparty, providing information intermediary and pricing services for virtual currency transactions, token issuance financing and virtual currency derivatives trading, are suspected of illegal financial activities such as illegal issuance of token tickets, unauthorized public issuance of securities, illegal futures business and illegal fund-raising. If the related illegal financial activities constitute a crime, criminal responsibility shall be investigated according to law.
3. Domestic staff of relevant overseas virtual currency exchanges, as well as legal persons, unincorporated organizations and natural persons who know or should know that they are engaged in virtual currency-related businesses and still provide services such as marketing promotion, payment and settlement, and technical support, shall be investigated for relevant responsibilities according to law.
4. There are legal risks in participating in virtual currency investment and trading activities. If a legal person, an unincorporated organization or a natural person violates public order and good customs by investing in virtual currency and related derivatives, the relevant civil legal acts shall be invalid and the losses shall be borne by themselves; Suspected of undermining financial order and endangering financial security, the relevant departments shall investigate and deal with it according to law.
To sum up, it is not illegal to trade virtual currency. It is legal to sell virtual currency, which exists legally in China, but it is illegal to use virtual currency to engage in illegal activities. It is illegal to engage in securities, futures and insurance business without the approval of the relevant competent departments of the state, or illegally engage in fund payment and settlement business.
Legal basis:
Criminal law of the people's Republic of China
Article 225
Whoever, in violation of state regulations, commits one of the following illegal business operations and disrupts the market order, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than five years or criminal detention, and shall also, or shall only, be fined not less than one time but not more than five times the illegal income; If the circumstances are especially serious, he shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than five years, and shall also be fined not less than one time but not more than five times for illegal gains or confiscation of property:
(a) operating a franchise or monopoly commodity or other commodities whose operation is restricted by laws and administrative regulations without permission;
(2) buying and selling import and export licenses, import and export certificates of origin and other business licenses or approval documents stipulated by laws and administrative regulations;
(three) without the approval of the relevant competent departments of the state, illegally engaged in securities, futures, insurance business, or illegally engaged in fund payment and settlement business;
(four) other illegal business activities that seriously disrupt the market order.