In early September, China banned initial coin offerings (ICOs) and a week later Chinese authorities shut down major cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. In this article, we will delve into how this ban impacted the whole crypto economy not just in China, but around the world.
Currently in China, many are still concerned about ICO regulation. Despite this worry, business keeps on going as usual with companies saying they cannot stop now that the trend has begun. Even with the bans on the technology the market should keep going. Although the marketing has been paused everyone is waiting to see what happens next.
Hope dies last
Yet, it seems China’s ban will be temporary. Countries like the US and Japan are looking to create new regulations that will help legitimize cryptocurrencies by providing investors protections under already existent securities laws. The new rules can open up a whole new market, allowing companies to raise capital through alternative methods in the future.
Even though the ban is in place, the Chinese are getting creative and trading digital currencies via WeChat and even turning to Telegram, further demonstrating that cryptocurrency is much needed and still have a future in China. Where there is a will, there’s a way.
However, reacting to the news Bitcoin prices immediately fell up to 25 percent - instigating sudden panic in the market. Several Blockchain events - including our BlockShow meetup in Shanghai - were called off fearing China’s strict stance on the cryptocurrencies. Startups that had raised money through initial coin offering had to return all the funds to the investors.
Hope doesn’t die at all
One such company is Atmatrix, a next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) Blockchain with the smart-contract platform, held a successful crowdsale raising approx $50 mln before the ban but had to send all the money back to its investors. They will be taking part in the BlockShow Asia, readily willing to share inside information on the latest situation, as well as their experiences with the current regulation of ICO’s in China. In addition, Atmatrix will gladly be joining the BlockShow as exhibitors and speakers.
Meantime, we got a chance to catch up with Atmatrix to closely understand what’s going on in China. The Atmatrix team was very supportive in answering all our questions. Here’s a brief rundown of the interview:
Q. What are the main targets of Atmatrix at this very moment?
A. We’ve fulfilled the compliance from the regulations of China and developed a legal structure to ensure Atmatrix goes along smoothly. The plan is to launch our decentralized AIaaS Market in November to global AI market, which will grant mobile Apps & DApps with AI capacity. Atmatrix Foundation is working aggressively to develop the international community for both developers and crypto enthusiasts.
Q. Since you raise close to $50 mln through a token sale, but had to return funds to the investors due to China’s regulations, are you planning to do another crowdsale?
A. We will fully comply with the Chinese regulation regarding the ICO. We’ve started Atmatrix.org as an international Blockchain project from the beginning, and the foundation is registered in Singapore. We may launch another round of token sales globally under the certain compliance environment.
Q. We’re all desperately waiting for the final from the Chinese government on ICOs and cryptocurrencies in general. What are your thoughts and plans for this? Are you targeting international marketing only for now or Chinese investors are still on your radar?
A. We’ve done a good job in taking care of the compliance issues as per the requirements of Chinese regulators, and we always have the plan to make Atmatrix grow globally. It is important to understand that there is no border for the Blockchain world, or any limitation for our clients to use our public and decentralized AIaaS platform. We have been aiming for the global market since our launch. That being said, Chinese tech giants such as Huawei, Baidu, Tencent, Ali and so on, will also be part of the ecosystem which Atmatrix is building right now.
Q. What is your and your company's general view with regards to the growth of the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency industry after the ICO ban and shutdown of exchanges in China?
A. Bitcoin and cryptocurrency industries will continue to grow even after the bans and shutdowns in China.
Join the reigning optimism
Clearly, Atmatrix is very optimistic about the future of cryptocurrencies in China and the rest of the world. It is the new Internet, so to speak. Without a doubt, we will continue to keep a close eye on further developments around this whole “Blockchain regulations vs. startups” situation.
Atmatrix and other prominent Blockchain companies such as Qtum, Achain, XAIN, Changelly, Bluzelle, Nebulas, among many others, will be present at our BlockShow main conference in Singapore on Nov. 29-30.
Additionally, some popular Blockchain-focused YouTubers and bloggers such as Ameer Rosic, Ivan on Tech with two mln+ views will be in attendance. You will have a unique opportunity to meet them in person at our special Media corner, and perhaps even get a chance to take that selfie you always dreamed of!
So what are you waiting for? We’re almost sold out. Grab your tickets before the prices dramatically increase in two weeks once again: https://blockshowasia.com/buy-ticket
We’ll see you on the other side!