Another cryptocurrency website blocked in China is TradingView
China has expanded its crackdown on cryptocurrencies by blocking user access to two major crypto data websites-CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap.
According to a report by The Block, CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko users in the country have been experiencing problems accessing the two sites since the morning of September 28.
The data shows that the popular charting and analytics platform TradingView is also inaccessible to users in China.
According to reports, the censorship appears to be a direct action by China’s Great Firewall, as online search tools provided results showing that the sites were indeed blocked to users in the country. Such a tool – Blocky.greatfire.org -shows that both CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko have been 100% blocked and access is completely restricted.
According to T M Lee, CoinGecko’s co-founder and CEO, the cryptocurrency platform has not “proactively” blocked access for Chinese IP addresses. In the meantime, CoinMarketCap has not yet commented on this development.
With this blockade, it seems that the only way for crypto users from mainland China to access the data pages is through Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). A VPN allows a user to disguise their IP address by building a protected network where encrypting a connection helps bypass a lock command.
China’s move to block the sites follows the country’s crackdown on cryptocurrencies. After the authorities stopped mining cryptocurrencies and forced miners to flee, they now banned the trading and use of cryptocurrencies for the second time.
Elsewhere, Alibaba joins several other Chinese companies and businesses shutting down crypto-related services. The e-commerce giant said on Monday that it will not sell crypto mining machines and will ban the use of the service for the sale of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), as well as other major cryptocurrencies.