Digital currency is a virtual form of money having no physical existence. The skyrocketing price of bitcoin has witnessed dramatic price hikes in the past years.
Due to its price volatility and decentralization property, digital currency has gained mainstream traction across the globe. Asia, being home to three major global economic hubs, has played a significant role in extending the scope of cryptocurrency. This article highlights the relation of Asian countries with the digital currency, its implications, and the regulations that underpin it.
China
China is considered one of the central economic hubs in the world. It has played a crucial role in promoting cryptocurrency, particularly Bitcoin. It was regarded as the capital of Bitcoin mining and trading. The government could foresee Bitcoin replacing their fiat currency, Yuan. To control crypto’s taking over paper money, the government of China suffered a great deal. Bitcoin was released in 2009, whereas its first exchange was inaugurated in 2011 in China. The attention it received was because of price hikes. It kept on gaining popularity and China became the first country to embrace crypto enthusiastically.
One search engine, Baidu, began to accept payments in return for their services in the form of Bitcoin. Following cheap electricity, China opened a large mining center which provided jobs to many people. The fear of cryptocurrency replacing fiat insisted the government ban Initial Coin Offerings in 2017.
The rate of mining kept falling. In 2020, it dropped to 67% and by the mid of July 2021, it completely ended. By the end of 2021, the government imposed a full ban on cryptocurrency, resulting in the shutting down of major crypto businesses and exchanges in the country.
Japan
Japan is the hub of many crypto firms and is remarked as the rising sun of crypto. It was accepted by Japanese people in the very beginning when the currency value was not even hiked. The transactions of millions were carried out using Bitcoin in Japan. One of the biggest crypto exchanges, Mt. Gox began operating in Tokyo. Things were highly favorable for crypto users before the Mt. Gox suffered a massive hack of around 459.8 million dollars in 2015. The security was not up to the mark which enabled the hackers to steal money from hot wallets and the company’s funds. This led to the loss of trust of people in cryptocurrency. The country faced nearly 160 cyberattacks, following which, the country imposed regulations.
The financial department in Japan has legitimized cryptocurrency with a set of regulations to make it safe for the people. Keeping in view the illicit activities and money laundering, the Financial Service Agency FSA, Japan has imposed a ban on private coins and any cryptocurrency to be launched needs to be legalized by FSA first so it can keep track of financial activities.
India
India has been accepting and banning crypto for a long time. Considering security reasons, the Reserve Bank of India has decided to launch its digital currency after the supreme court bans it.
Korea, Vietnam, Philippines and Indonesia
These countries opened their gateways to crypto and opened many crypto exchanges. They are working on building an environment-friendly framework for crypto. Vietnam is at the top of the list of flowing cryptocurrencies in the country. Other countries are following the path to making it secure.
Other Asian countries
The remaining Asian countries have either banned, illegalized, or corrupted cryptocurrency. The countries are particularly concerned with instability, involvement in illicit activities, security, and scam or hack events. Therefore, they do not allow the flow of digital money in their regions.
The future of cryptocurrency in Asia
The future of cryptocurrency in Asia remains a mystery. The people who see it as rising potential still favor it while the critics still discuss the risks and threats it has posed to the users. However, if followed by proper regulations and stability, it can boost the economy of Asian countries.
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