China’s central bank on Monday reaffirmed its hardline stance on cryptocurrency trading while unveiling new initiatives to advance its state-backed digital yuan, reports Caixin. Speaking at the opening of the 2025 Annual Conference of Financial Street Forum in Beijing, People’s Bank of China (PBOC) Governor Pan Gongsheng said existing curbs on virtual currency activities remain fully in effect and will continue to be enforced coordination law enforcement agencies.
He added that the PBOC will closely monitor the development of offshore stablecoins, warning that such assets remain in their infancy and pose potential systemic risks. Pan cited concerns from global financial regulators that stablecoins often fail to meet fundamental compliance standards, such as anti-money laundering and customer identification requirements.
Referencing discussions at the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington, Pan noted that stablecoins dominated the agenda among global finance officials. Many expressed fears that the tokens could undermine monetary sovereignty in developing countries, faciliatate illicit cross-border flows, and heighten fragility in the global financial system through speculative activity.