Alibaba to Stop Selling Crypto Mining Machines Following Friday’s crypto ban by Chinese central bank
On Monday, E-commerce giant Alibaba announced that it was going to stop selling specialized crypto mining equipment following Friday’s announcement by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) that banned all cryptocurrency-related activities in mainland China beginning October 15.
Alibaba, which besides specializing in e-commerce and retail also specializes in internet and technology, had been selling specialized crypto mining equipment even after China started a crackdown on mining activities some months ago. At the time, China had not banned most crypto activities and several companies were continuing with business as usual other than miners and banks.
In Monday’s announcement, Alibaba said that it would stop selling the crypto mining equipment starting October 8, 2021.
While Alibaba pointed out that the main reason for it stopping to sell crypto mining equipment was Friday’s PBoC notice that was signed by some of China’s top financial regulators, the company also said that it has also taken into account the “instability of laws and regulations” surrounding cryptocurrencies around the globe.
Besides the ban on mining rigs and related accessories in China, there is also a prohibition on the sale of digital assets like Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), BeaoCoin, and QuarkCoin most of the miners specialize in Bitcoin and Ethereum mining.
In the announcement, Alibaba will specifically shut down the “Blockchain Miners” and “Blockchain Miner Accessories.”
Systematic war against cryptocurrencies in China
China started by prohibiting banks from offering crypto services.
Then, it turned to crypto mining arguing that crypto mining was contributing to environmental degradation due to their carbon emissions since mining required lots of energy which forced miners to turn to energy production methods that were not environmentally friendly.
Crypto businesses to either close shop or migrate to other parts of the world
Friday’s announcement by the PBoC marked the climax of the cryptocurrencies crackdown in mainland China making the environments completely difficult for businesses thriving on crypto activities to either shut down or migrate to other parts of the world.
When the ban on crypto mining was announced, some of the crypto mining companies migrated to Europe and United States in search of a friendlier environment. This time round every company connected with crypto will either have to close or simply look for friendlier markets elsewhere.
Several crypto exchanges including BitMart and Biki have announced they will stop operating in mainland China by end of November and the start of October respectively.