Bitcoin in China
比特币在中国
A dream dispelled
美梦破碎
Chinese regulators make life hard for crypto-currencies
中国的监管机构使加密电子货币难以生存
NOT so long ago, China looked to be the promised land for crypto-currencies. Bitcoin and its rivals were traded freely and online exchanges proliferated. On one estimate, China accounted for more than half of the world's trade in Bitcoin last year. Near the end of last year, when its price was above $1,000, more than 100,000 coins were being traded daily on BTC China, a local exchange.
不久前，中国看起来还是加密电子货币的应许之地，比特币与其竞争对手在此进行自由买卖，在线交易量激增。有人估计，中国去年的比特币交易量超过其全球总交易量的一半。去年年末，比特币价格高于1,000美元，作为国内比特币交易平台，比特币中国那时的日交易量超过10万比特币。
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Alas, those heady days are gone. Prices have plunged below $500 of late and hardly 2,000 coins are now traded daily on BTC China. According to Bobby Lee, the exchange's founder, “Most investors have left the market.” What happened? The short answer is regulation.
唉，可叹那些激动人心的日子已然一去不复返。比特币价格在后期爆跌至500美元以下，比特币中国的日交易量几乎还不到2,000比特币。其创始人李启元表示，“大部分投资者已离场。”到底发生了什么？说得简单点：监管插手了。
In early December China's central bank declared that Bitcoin was not a currency. This slowed its rise, but enthusiasts remained unbowed as the declaration fell far short of the outright ban some had feared. Then regulators forbade the firms that act as middlemen between businesses and credit-card networks from working with the exchanges. That was a more serious blow, but exchange operators found ways round the ban.
去年12月初，中国央行宣告比特币不是货币。这减缓了比特币增速，但仍有狂热者并不为之所动，坚称央行的此项声明远未达到有些人所畏惧的全面禁止比特币的程度。但紧随其后，监管机构关停那些与比特币交易平台合作，充当商家和信用卡网络交易“中间人”角色的第三方公司，则是对其更严重的打击。然而，交易平台运营商们还是找到了绕过禁令的方式。
Rumours now suggest that the central bank has instructed commercial banks to halt all dealings with cyber-exchanges by April 15th. Such a move would be even more harmful to Bitcoin, says Zennon Kapron of Kapronasia, a local expert on the topic. As in most places, Bitcoin has not taken off as a means of payment in China; instead, it is mainly a speculative investment. But the steady drip of new rules makes it ever harder for ordinary Chinese to invest.
当前有传言称，央行已指示商业银行于4月15日前停止一切相关的网络虚拟交易。财务和技术咨询企业亚锴璞隆的曾诺?卡普隆是国内研究此类问题的专家，他表示，这一举动会对比特币造成更大伤害。在中国的大多数地方，比特币仍未成功变为一种支付手段，与之相对，它主要充当一种投机性的投资工具。但新规定的稳步渗透使中国的普通百姓越来越难以用其进行投资。
Still, one venture capitalist keen on crypto-currencies predicts “some workaround is likely”. If banks are forbidden to hold corporate accounts for exchanges, one insider whispers that personal bank accounts of senior executives could be used instead. OKCoin, another Chinese exchange, insists it has an emergency plan involving an “overseas version”.
不过，一位热衷于加密电子货币的风险投资家预测，“打擦边球还是有可能的”。据一位内部知情人士透露，如果银行被禁止持有企业账户进行交易，高管的个人银行账户可用来作为替代。另一个中国比特币交易平台OKCoin则坚称它一直拥有涉及“海外版本”的应急预案。
It is too early to declare Bitcoin dead in China. On March 21st the central bank clarified that it was not banning trading in crypto-currencies. Still, its crackdown has dispelled the dream that was helping to drive up Bitcoin's value in the first place. As Mr Lee points out wistfully, “A billion Chinese won't all be buying Bitcoin anytime soon.”
现在就断言比特币在中国必死还为时过早。3月21日，央行澄清称它并未禁止买卖加密电子货币。但尽管如此，它对比特币的打压还是使人们最初对于助推比特币价值飙升的美梦破碎了。正如李先生所担忧的那样，“十亿中国人并不都会在一时间立即购买比特币。” |