Alibaba officially announced Monday that its platform would prohibit sales of cryptocurrency miners and suspend categories for blockchain miners and accessories from its website on Oct. 8. In addition to stopping sales of crypto mining devices, Alibaba will impose a ban on using its platforms to sell major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), as well as smaller coins like Quark (QRK).
Any sellers that continue listing crypto miners on Alibaba will face penalties.
The new restrictions involve but are not limited to crypto mining-related hardware and software, as well as relevant tutorials, guides, and strategies, the announcement notes. Any sellers that continue listing crypto miners or relevant products on Alibaba’s platforms after Oct. 15 will face penalties under applicable rules, the firm warned in a detailed description of new restrictions. Some of the listed penalties include blocking stores, freezing, and closing merchant accounts for maliciously evading the new rules like intentionally placing relevant products into other categories, Alibaba said.
The latest policy changes come in response to compliance issues in listing products and handling transactions.
Alibaba noted that the latest policy changes come in response to compliance issues in listing products and handling transactions. “Members have responsibility for complying with relevant laws and regulations applicable to any country of sale. We will keep track of policy changes in each country and adjust our control policies accordingly,” the company stated. The Chinese e-commerce giant’s move came soon after the Chinese government announced new measures to combat the crypto adoption, declaring all crypto-related transactions illegal in the country on Sept. 24. In response to a renewed crypto crackdown, major crypto exchanges like Binance and Huobi subsequently halted some services in the Asian country.
