China Construction Bank flags "Dogecoin" transfer note, freezes customer accounts

China Construction Bank froze accounts held by Ms. Yu and her husband after a 250-yuan transfer between them carried the note "Dogecoin this week," which bank staff said triggered virtual currency controls, China News Weekly reported on Dec. 12. Branch employees told Ms. Yu she needed to submit her husband's recent bank statements and a handwritten pledge that past and future transactions were unrelated to virtual currencies to lift the restrictions, while staff at her husband's Dalian branch said accounts linked to virtual currency transactions could face irreversible freezes. Calls to the bank's national hotline and the Tianjin branch yielded unclear replies, with staff requesting additional documents including a marriage certificate to process the restriction removal. On Dec. 5, seven associations including the National Internet Finance Association of China issued a risk warning urging member institutions not to engage in virtual currency or real-world asset token issuance and trading in China.