China’s new online marketing rules tighten ban on crypto promotions

China’s new online marketing rules tighten an already sweeping crypto ban and place fresh pressure on financial influencers, echoing parallel crackdowns in Europe, Australia and the UK.

China’s central bank and seven other regulators have finalized the “Administrative Measures for Online Marketing of Financial Products” (Announcement No. 9), dated April 21 and publicly released on April 24.

The rules take effect on Sept. 30, 2026, and confine online marketing of financial products to licensed financial institutions and lawfully entrusted third-party platforms, and prohibit any organization or individual from offering online marketing services or any other form of assistance that facilitates illegal financial activities.

The text explicitly folds virtual currency issuance and trading, along with illegal foreign exchange margin business, into the definition of illegal financial activity, reinforcing a stance first made explicit when the People’s Bank of China declared all crypto transactions illegal in 2021.

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