Did a Shanghai Court Just Legalize Bitcoin in China?

Bitcoin has been very popular in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. The cryptocurrency has also enjoyed great success in neighboring South Korea and Japan.

Cryptocurrency policy in China has been varied—from allowing citizens and residents of mainland China to own crypto, to banning the asset class in 2021. It would seem a court ruling in the Municipality of Shanghai has recently opened the door for Chinese citizens to own cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.

Court In China Legalizes Crypto Ownership

Judge Sun Jie of the Shanghai Songjiang People’s Court set forth some new jurisprudence on cryptocurrency this week. The South China Morning Post reported Thursday that the court handed down a decision clarifying the legality of cryptocurrency under Chinese federal law.

The Shanghai judge wrote that it is “not illegal for individuals to hold cryptocurrency” in China. Moreover, the decision categorized the asset class as a form of property.

Sun clarified that China’s strict regulations on disorderly behavior in cryptocurrency markets does not impose a total ban on ownership. In fact, these regulations only make sense if it is legal to own crypto in the country.

“That is why laws and regulations always maintain a high-pressure crackdown on speculative activities in cryptocurrency trading,” Sun wrote.

How to classify cryptocurrencies has plagued government financial regulators the world over since Bitcoin’s 2009 debut. Crypto tokens are classified as property in the U.S. by the Internal Revenue Service, which collects federal income taxes.

Chinese Rush Into Bitcoin in 2024

The ruling could signify the beginning of a more tolerant cryptocurrency policy in China moving forward. Despite what many consider a crypto ban in the country, miners there make up over 50% of the Bitcoin network’s hash power.

Meanwhile, Chinese Bitcoin investors with a little technical know-how have been working around the law. Despite its dubious legal status, a few Chinese Internet users have fled a five-year stock winter for cryptocurrency.

The average Bitcoin price on crypto exchanges consolidated above the $98,300 handle by 6:00 AM Saturday morning in Beijing, China.

With volume steadily building as the price increased over the day and week, the world’s first cryptocurrency has a real pressure cooker of a market going here. Many analysts expect an increase to a new $100,000 ATH any day now.

Financial advisory firm deVere Group’s CEO Nigel Green said in an article that appeared in the Independent Friday, “The $100,000 milestone, which once seemed bold, now looks conservative. I believe bitcoin could reach $120,000 in the first quarter of 2025 as the rally gains further traction.”

Polymarket, Ethereum’s largest betting market, gave BTCUSD a 93% chance Thursday of reaching $100,000 in 2024 with $6.8 million in betting volume.