<

China passed the civil code which expands the scope of inheritance rights to include Bitcoin and cryptocurrency

According to the third session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC), it seems that China has passed civil codes, extending the scope of inheritance to include cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin.

Inheritance Bitcoin is protected by law

The Chinese President Xi Jinping presided the third session of the Thirteenth National People’s Congress. The existing civil code of China was updated and new legislation that includes virtual currency as the civil rights of the citizens of China. On May 22, the draft was initially submitted to the committee following years of deliberation.

This implies that in case a Chinese citizen in possession of Bitcoin, Ethereum, or some other cryptocurrency dies, all his holdings would be allotted to the nominated person in his will. Moreover, other internet-based properties, including the in-game currencies, could now also be passed down.

The decision to draft a civil code was announced in October 2014, and the legislative process started in June 2016, the news outlet detailed:

“The new civil code states that the property rights of individuals are equally safeguarded to those of the State and collective, and online virtual assets are protected, too.”

Wang Chen, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, told the session:

“The compilation of the civil code is an important component of the plans of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core for developing the rule of law. This new civil code will enter into force on Jan. 1, 2021.”

Primitive Ventures’ Dovey Wan, in his tweet, voiced some concerns regarding this issue.

Some Chinese courts also ruled that cryptocurrencies are property that should be protected by law. In particular, Shanghai No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court ruled that Bitcoin is an asset protected by law. Besides, the Shenzhen District People’s Court ruled that Ethereum was a legal asset of economic value.

Read more:

Follow us on Telegram

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on Facebook

You might also like

LATEST NEWS

LASTEST NEWS