2017.09.1103:22:00UTC+00China Reportedly Banning Bitcoin Exchanges, Other Cryptocurrencies

Chinese authorities are looking to ban the trading of bitcoin and other digital currency on local exchanges, hitting the cryptocurrency with another heavy blow after the country illegalized initial coin offerings in the previous week.

The ban is only applicable to the exchange of cryptocurrencies on exchanges, according to sources. Regulators are not planning to shutter over-the-counter deals, the people privy to the matter said. China's central bank refused to comment immediately.

Bitcoin fell on Friday after a report by the Caixin magazine that China is planning to stop the trading of the cryptocurrency, limiting its biggest weekly decline in almost two months. The nation represents 23 percent of the overall global bitcoin trades and is also a hub for the biggest bitcoin miners in the world, who utilize massive levels of computing power to affirm transactions in the digital currency.

While the motive behind Beijing's move is not clear-cut, it comes amid a broad campaign to stem financial risks in the country. Bitcoin has surged around 600 percent in dollar denomination in almost two months. PBOC has done tests of its own prototype cryptocurrency, bringing it closer to becoming the first major central bank to issue digital currency.