BTCTrade Halts Deposits as China Ban Taking Hold

BTCTrade, a China-based Bitcoin exchange, has announced "with a heavy heart" on their website that it is halting deposits. They received a phone call from their bank saying that they are required to close their account due to it belonging to Bitcoin-related business, effective April 15.

As a remedial measure, they plan to Leverage operations in Hong Kong, Japan and the U.S., allowing for dollar deposits. The announcement ends off by saying that as these developments are put behind us, the future is bright for Bitcoin and BTCTrade.

Bitcoin prices have tumbled, hitting fresh 2014 lows near $400. Altcoins have followed suit.

Their announcement comes at roughly the same time as that they too have received notice of a bank account closure and will be halting deposits.

With the ban in China appearing to take hold, the question remains if/when the remaining exchanges like BTC China and OKCoin will follow suit. BTC China recently that they have not received any notice. One also wonders if exchanges will be able to find a workaround. For example, having funds sent to aliases or holding companies not directly involved with Bitcoin business, although it is easy for banks to catch on.