The Supreme People's Court of China (SPC) has introduced a new judicial framework designed to standardise how criminal cases involving virtual currencies are processed in China.

The guidelines, published during the Eighth National Criminal Trial Work Conference on November 13, 2025, cover how authorities should seize, value and dispose of digital assets involved in offences such as fraud, money-laundering and illegal fundraising.

Key measures include processes for authenticating blockchain and digital-transaction evidence, and explicitly holding platform operators criminally liable if they provide services supporting cross-border online gambling or facilitate illicit token flows.

The guidelines do not liberalise cryptocurrency trading. In fact they reinforce China’s existing ban on local retail crypto trading while giving law-enforcement agencies clearer tools for action.

Why The Update Matters Now

China has long treated virtual-currency activity as a high-risk domain requiring strict control. Earlier regulations date back to 2017 when ICOs were prohibited, followed by a complete ban on retail crypto trading in 2021.

Yet enforcement has been inconsistent in some areas, especially when digital-assets are seized during investigations and local authorities must decide how to handle, value or liquidate them. Reuters reported in April 2025 that China’s growing pile of seized cryptocurrencies was prompting calls for clearer rules.

The SPC’s new framework steps into this gap by setting uniform standards for courts and prosecutors. This enhances legal certainty, supports centralised enforcement and aligns cybersecurity, financial-crime and data-protection priorities under one roof.

What The Rules Say

The guidance includes several notable elements:

  • Virtual currencies used in crimes must be treated as assets subject to seizure, valuation and disposal as evidence in criminal proceedings.
  • Blockchain analytics and electronic-data authentication must meet judicial standards so that digital evidence is admissible and reliable.
  • Operators of platforms or services that knowingly assist cross-border online gambling or virtual-currency schemes face criminal liability, not just administrative penalties.
  • Crimes involving misuse or sale of citizens’ personal data tied to virtual-currency flows will see tougher penalties.

These measures suggest the court sees virtual‐asset crime as both a financial risk and a broader national-security concern. The coordinated focus on cybercrime, gambling and data privacy reflects China’s integrated approach to risk management.

Implications For The Crypto Ecosystem

For international crypto businesses the message is clear: China remains highly restrictive on retail token trading and related financial services, and the legal framework is becoming more exacting.

Firms dealing with or targeting Chinese users will face heightened scrutiny, especially if services touch on payments, tokens or data hosting.

For asset holders and service providers the standardisation of asset treatment means seized tokens may be handled more systematically, reducing ambiguity in outcomes of enforcement actions. This could reduce local variation in how cases have been resolved historically.

Another implication is that China is positioning itself not as a crypto-friendly market but as one with predictable enforcement of the rules that do exist. That has implications for global firms considering regulatory arbitrage or strategic localisation in China’s fintech environment.

What To Watch

Key questions will include how rapidly local courts implement the new guidelines and how many cases are brought under the clarified rules. Also worth watching: how platform operators respond, whether they self-restrict services, exit Chinese markets or partner with local firms.

Given the broader global debate about digital-asset policy and regulation, China’s move may influence other jurisdictions in Asia and beyond that are wrestling with similar questions of valuation, seizure and disposal of crypto assets in crime and enforcement.

Ultimately the SPC’s updated rules reinforce that China sees virtual currencies not as emerging asset classes for retail consumption, but as potential vectors of risk requiring structured legal control.

How this approach plays out in practice will shape the next chapter of digital-asset regulation there and across the region.