Bitmain-Funded Mining Pool ViaBTC Launches Bitcoin & Ethereum Exchange
The IMF believes that cryptoassets could reduce demand for central bank-issued currency.
ViaBTC, one of bitcoin’s largest mining pools, has launched a new CNY cryptocurrency exchange, enabling trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum for domestic users in China and global users alike.
In an announcement yesterday, ViaBTC has confirmed the launch of ViaBTC.cn, its cryptocurrency trading platform. At launch, the platform is offering fiat to Bitcoin and Ethereum-based trading pairs, namely CNY-BTC, CNY-ETH. The platform is also allowing trading between ETH and BTC for CNY as well as ETH/BTC.
The launch comes following a ¥20 million (approx $3 million) Series A funding round in March, led by bitcoin mining giant Bitmain.
Speaking to CCN.com at the time, ViaBTC operating chief Sara Ouyang explained the company’s plans toward expanding its footprint in the cryptocurrency industry. She underlined mining and exchange operations as two important foundations of the industry, while adding: “We haven’t done a bad job in mining and believe the market for exchanges is big enough for us to multiple our users if we can do a good job (as an exchange) too.”
While there are whispers in the community that ViaBTC is discreetly owned by Bitmain, Ouyang denied those rumors to state her company was “100% independent” in running itself and that Bitmain was only an investor.
She told CCN.com:
ViaBTC is not owned by Bitmain. They are just investing in our new (and promising) business. We are 100% independent in running our own company.
The launch of the exchange comes at a time when OKCoin and BTCC, two of China’s ‘big three’ exchanges resuming bitcoin withdrawals, which is unlikely to be a coincidence as Chinese regulators complete their months-long inspection of regional exchanges.
Beyond domestic Chinese adopters and traders, the exchange is also welcoming global users to its trading platform with registration with verified identity (KYC) documents.
In the current regulatory climate enforced by the People’s Bank of China, the nation’s central bank, ViaBTC is allowing daily withdrawals up to 10 BTC and 1000 ETC.
At launch, ViaBTC is charging zero fees for withdrawals of BTC and ETH and a 3% fee for CNY withdrawals.
ViaBTC also claims its proprietary ‘high-speed matching engine’ to process a maximum of 10,000 transactions per second, as the Chinese market rebounds toward the top of the world’s largest trading markets.
Featured image of Bitcoin and Yuan banknote from Shutterstock.
