The Disposal of Virtual Money in Criminal Cases: Challenges and Innovations

Recently, an article about the disposal of virtual money in criminal cases has attracted attention in the industry. The article discusses the challenges faced in current judicial practices and possible innovative directions. As a legal practitioner, I conducted a brief analysis of this article.

Overview of Main Content

The article first introduces the basic concepts, characteristics, and trading methods of Virtual Money. Subsequently, based on relevant regulatory policies, it points out that there are currently no legal Virtual Money trading platforms in our country, and there is a lack of statutory rules for its assessment and identification.

The author analyzed the difficulties in handling criminal cases related to Virtual Money in judicial practice.

1. Traditional methods of sealing, freezing, and seizing are difficult to apply.
2. The lack of legitimate evaluation institutions and disposal platforms leads to difficulties in value recognition and realization.

At the same time, the article affirms the property attributes of Virtual Money, but this view still remains controversial in actual judicial practice. In civil cases, courts generally do not accept disputes involving Virtual Money.

Discussion on Disposal Solutions

The article proposes some possible disposal solutions:

1. For virtual money that needs to be compensated to the victim or confiscated and stored, it is recommended to file with the relevant departments and entrust a qualified third-party institution to liquidate it on a compliant exchange overseas.
2. For virtual money that harms national security and public interests, it is recommended to destroy it.

Commentary Analysis

1. The identification of the property attributes of Virtual Money differs in civil and criminal cases. There is a general consensus in criminal cases, while it is still not widely recognized in civil cases.

2. The current seizure model ("assets stationary, information flow") is not innovative, but rather a stopgap measure taken by judicial authorities due to their unfamiliarity with Virtual Money technology.

3. There are policy barriers to the recommendation of entrusting third-party institutions to handle disposal abroad. According to current regulations, domestic entities are not allowed to engage in the exchange business between Virtual Money and fiat currency.

4. The feasibility of the court directly opening foreign currency accounts to receive disposal funds is questionable. Existing regulations impose strict restrictions on the use of foreign exchange accounts, making it difficult to apply to Virtual Money disposal operations.

5. The destruction of privacy coins may lead to an appreciation of the circulating privacy coins, and it may not necessarily solve the problem completely.

Future Outlook

The judicial disposal dilemma of Virtual Money essentially stems from the mainland's policy that prohibits the exchange of Virtual Money for fiat currency. If relevant policies can be adjusted in the future to allow compliant institutions to conduct limited business in the mainland, it will greatly simplify the disposal process and eliminate many current disputes.

Prior to this, judicial authorities and relevant departments still need to explore more efficient and compliant disposal solutions within the existing framework to address the increasing number of cases involving Virtual Money. At the same time, it is also necessary to strengthen training on relevant technologies and knowledge to enhance the capability of judicial personnel in handling such cases.