China authorities are said to be conducting an investigation into Yao Qian, a prominent pro-blockchain official, over potential legal violations. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China is reportedly looking into Yao for “serious violations” of discipline and law, although the specific reasons for the investigation have not been disclosed.
Yao currently holds the position of director of the Science and Technology Supervision Bureau at the China Securities Regulatory Commission, making him a significant figure in the Chinese blockchain community. He is often referred to as China’s “Crypto Dad” and was the first director of China’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) research department at the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) from 2017 to 2018.
Even after leaving his role in CBDC development at the PBoC, Yao continued to be involved in digital currency research and discussions. In May 2021, he predicted that state-run digital currencies would become more advanced and could eventually operate on blockchain networks like Ethereum.
China piloted its CBDC, the digital yuan, in late 2019, making it one of the first jurisdictions in the world to conduct real-world tests of a CBDC. Shortly after the domestic testing of the digital yuan, the PBoC initiated cross-border CBDC pilots in collaboration with central banks in Hong Kong, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates in 2021.
While China has taken a hostile stance towards cryptocurrencies and banned all crypto transactions in 2021, Hong Kong, as a special administrative region of China, has been actively embracing the crypto industry. On April 24, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong approved the first batch of spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs), positioning Hong Kong ahead of the United States in the launch of spot Ether ETFs, which is scheduled for April 30.