The titan of Chinese social media, Weibo, has been in the spotlight recently following its rigorous enforcement of regulatory measures. The platform deleted 80 well-known crypto-related accounts and removed a staggering 17,000 posts related to illicit profit-making. Weibo, operated by Sina, boasts an active daily user base of around 258 million users in a country where its global counterparts such as Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and Instagram face a blockade.
Despite the de facto ban on crypto trading in China, crypto-related content continued to make rounds on selected Weibo accounts. Nonetheless, with the latest purge, some of the less popular accounts still host such content in a nation that was once a global leader in crypto mining and trading. Here seems to be an unspoken rule in play, spoken openly by Moonlight, a user and broadcaster on Twitter, “Your [Weibo] account is safe until it gets too big. But once it reaches a certain number of followers, all your efforts could go in vain.”
The impressive reach of the deleted accounts, each boasting over 8 million followers, exhibits the strength crypto holds among the Chinese-speaking masses. We can only anticipate the impact this could have on the token trading circuit, which largely continues to transpire on over the counter (OTC) markets, a backdoor capacity developed after the comprehensive ban on crypto-exchanges and related transactions by Chinese banks last year.
Chinese authorities began a stringent crackdown on cryptocurrency related content last year when leading commercial banks were advised to refrain from crypto-related transactions. This action was followed by an order from China’s top internet regulator, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), banning the “marketing” of crypto-related products and services, leading to the removal of 12,000 crypto-linked accounts and around 51,000 posts.
This crackdown, however, does not solely target crypto-related content. Weibo’s recent measures aimed at over 140,000 accounts suspected of circulating “fake news” or “harmful information,” highlighting its dedication to maintaining the platform’s integrity. Additionally, more than 7,000 posts based on “rumours” and 135 “rumour-mongering accounts” found themselves under scrutiny, amongst others violating the platform’s advertising regulations.
Thus, while on one side the mass deletion campaign showcases Weibo’s unabated dedication to adherence to local laws and regulations, on the other, affects the popular sentiment and accessibility of crypto information, eventually shaping the crypto-market dynamics. Is this a glimpse of what’s in store for the global crypto community, only time will tell.
Source: Cryptonews
