“Crypto is an Important Part of the Digital Economy”

China’s former finance minister Zhu Guangyao said at a forum hosted by Tsinghua University that the government should examine crypto more closely.

According to Sina News, Guangyao said, “Crypto also has negative effects, it is necessary to accept its risks and the damage it causes to capital markets. However, since it is a very important part of the digital economy development, we should also closely follow international developments and policy regulations.”

Sina reported that Zhu directly pointed to Republican Candidate Donald Trump’s remarks.

Trump said at the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville in July that the United States must fully embrace the crypto industry, otherwise “China will do it.”

Comparing crypto to the “steel industry of 100 years ago”, Trump stated that the sector is currently in its infancy but could one day surpass gold.

Zhu also emphasized that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH) exchange-traded funds (ETFs) despite opposition.

While mainland China remains cautious about crypto, Hong Kong, which maintains a semi-autonomous system of government and market regulations, has taken a significant step forward in terms of adoption by listing bitcoin and ether ETFs.