Crypto trading barred
China
Mainland China has barred crypto trading services since September 2021, restated in a February 2026 notice, so no platform may offer privacy coins there.
The rule
- Exchange listing
- Barred
- Holding by individuals
- Restricted
- Mixers
- No specific rule
- Self-hosted wallets
- Not checked
- In force from
- 15 Sep 2021
- Confidence
- Confirmed
Dates: the rule has been in force since 15 Sep 2021.
A notice dated 6 February 2026 (Yinfa [2026] No. 42), issued by the People's Bank of China with seven other authorities and in force from publication, treats virtual currency business as a prohibited financial activity: fiat-to-crypto and crypto-to-crypto exchange, acting as a central counterparty, information and pricing services for trading, token issuance financing and trading of crypto-related financial products. It also bars offshore firms and individuals from providing virtual currency services to mainland parties, bars unapproved issuance of renminbi-pegged stablecoins abroad, restricts real-world asset tokenisation and repeals the notice of 15 September 2021 (Yinfa [2021] No. 237), under which the same bar on crypto business had applied since 2021. Holding is not made an offence, but investments in virtual currency that breach public order and good morals are void in civil law and any losses fall on the investor, so holding is classed here as restricted. Neither notice mentions privacy coins, mixers or anonymity; they are caught by the general bar on crypto business.
Instrument: Notice on further preventing and disposing of risks related to virtual currency and other matters (Yinfa [2026] No. 42), People's Bank of China and seven other authorities, 6 February 2026, which replaced Yinfa [2021] No. 237 of 15 September 2021
Sources
- 中国人民银行 国家发展改革委 工业和信息化部 公安部 市场监管总局 金融监管总局 中国证监会 国家外汇局关于进一步防范和处置虚拟货币等相关风险的通知（银发〔2026〕42号） [Notice on further preventing and disposing of risks related to virtual currency and other matters]
- 关于进一步防范和处置虚拟货币交易炒作风险的通知 (银发〔2021〕237号) [Notice on further preventing and disposing of risks of speculation in virtual currency trading]
Exchanges and their restrictions
The 14 exchanges on this site, with the 32 spot markets they list for the seven coins, as checked on 13 Oct 2026. The exchange data records where each listing is restricted as text, so this page quotes each passage that names China, and marks the cells it comes from. An exchange with no such passage has no restriction for China on record here, which does not mean that it is licensed there or open to its residents. A listing is not an endorsement.
Swipe the table sideways to see all seven coins.
| Exchange | ZECZcashSpot on 11, perp only on 1 | XMRMoneroSpot on 6, perp only on 3 | DCRDecredSpot on 6 | ZANOZanoSpot on 1 | ARRRPirate ChainSpot on 2 | XVGVergeSpot on 4, perp only on 3 | FIROFiroSpot on 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binance | Restricted +perpApr 2025Shielded in: noShielded out: no | DelistedFeb 2024Perp only | RestrictedApr 2025 | Never listed | Never listed | Listed +perpWithdrawals frozen | DelistedApr 2025 |
| Coinbase | Listed +perpNov 2018Shielded in: yesShielded out: no | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed |
| Kraken | Restricted +perpJun 2026Shielded in: unknownShielded out: no | Restricted +perpJun 2026 | RestrictedMay 2026 | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed |
| OKX | Listed +perpNov 2025Shielded in: unknownShielded out: unknown | DelistedJan 2024 | DelistedJul 2024 | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed |
| Bybit | DelistedFeb 2025Perp only | Never listedPerp only | DelistedNov 2024 | Never listed | Never listed | Never listedPerp only | Never listed |
| Bitget | Listed +perpDec 2025Shielded in: unknownShielded out: unknown | Never listedPerp only | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listedPerp only | Never listed |
| KuCoin | Listed +perpJul 2019Shielded in: unknownShielded out: no | Listed +perpMar 2019 | ListedSep 2018 | Never listed | DelistedSep 2023 | Never listedPerp only | Never listed |
| Gate | Listed +perpShielded in: unknownShielded out: unknown | Restricted +perp | Listed | Never listed | ListedWithdrawals frozen | Restricted | Restricted |
| HTX | Listed +perpDec 2022Shielded in: noShielded out: no | Listed +perpDec 2022 | ListedDec 2022 | Never listed | Never listed | ListedDec 2022 | DelistedSep 2025 |
| MEXC | Listed +perpShielded in: unknownShielded out: unknown | Listed +perp | Listed | ListedDec 2023 | ListedJan 2024 | Listed +perp | Listed |
| Gemini | RestrictedMay 2018Shielded in: yesShielded out: yes | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed |
| Bitfinex | Listed +perpOct 2016Withdrawals frozenShielded in: unknownShielded out: unknown | ListedNov 2016 | DelistedMar 2022 | Never listed | Never listed | DelistedDec 2024 | Never listed |
| Crypto.com | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed | Never listed |
| Upbit | DelistedSep 2019 | DelistedSep 2019 | DelistedDec 2020 | Never listed | Never listed | DelistedMay 2020 | DelistedMay 2020 |
Passages that name China
- All coins: Global offshore platform; its user agreement (last updated 29 May 2025) bars all services to residents of the US, UK, Canada, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, mainland China, Kazakhstan, the Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine, North Korea, Cuba, Iran, Sudan and other comprehensively sanctioned or FATF blacklisted territories, so those users cannot trade any coin here
Self-hosted wallets for the seven coins
The nine wallets on the Wallets page that hold at least one of the seven coins, with the coins and platforms each supports. The wallet data does not record where each wallet is offered, so this list is the same on every country page, and China's own rules, set out above, apply to their use. A listing is not an endorsement.