Chinese Court Recognizes Bitcoin as Property
A Chinese court ruled Bitcoin is legally protected property and upheld a sentence for the theft of 107 BTC.
Despite China's strict restrictions on cryptocurrencies, a local court has ruled that Bitcoin qualifies as property protected under criminal law.
The Licang District People's Court in Qingdao determined that Bitcoin meets the legal definition of property under Chinese criminal law. The ruling was issued in a case involving the theft of 107 BTC.
According to local newspaper Shandong Legal Daily, a man identified by the surname Zhang used the recovery phrase of the victim’s cryptocurrency wallet to gain unauthorized access and transfer the funds. He was sentenced to 10 years and 9 months in prison and fined 100,000 yuan (approximately $13,800).
In its reasoning, the court stated that Bitcoin possesses economic value and can remain under the exclusive control of its owner. For these reasons, it should be treated as property under the law.
The stolen Bitcoin was valued at more than $3 million. The court based its assessment in part on the more than 660,000 yuan (around $91,000) that the offender received from selling a portion of the stolen assets.
The decision is expected to serve as an important legal reference in future cases involving cryptocurrency-related cybercrime in China.
