Can Bitcoin Be Banned? The Law in DE, CH, AT and Worldwide

Short answer: A government can ban bitcoin, but it cannot switch it off. It can ban exchanges, banks, mining and payments in its own country, as China has shown since 2021. The network keeps running regardless. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, bitcoin is legal and regulated. A ban on owning it would have to clear high constitutional hurdles there (as of Nov 13, 2026).

Every major price slump brings back the same headline: "Government considers bitcoin ban". If you want to hold bitcoin for years, that is not a theoretical question. You want to know whether your savings could one day become worthless or illegal. Here is what a bitcoin ban can achieve legally and technically, what it has achieved in other countries and what the situation is in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Further misconceptions, from "only for criminals" to "hacked", are checked in Bitcoin myths fact-checked.

What a bitcoin ban can actually ban

Bitcoin has no company, no headquarters and no server that can be seized. The network consists of computers all over the world that all check the same rules. If you run your own bitcoin node, you are one of them. A law therefore cannot hit bitcoin itself, only people and companies in its country.

Bans target four levels:

The first three levels are easy to enforce because they concern visible companies. The fourth is hard: a government can't see who keeps twelve words on a piece of paper. But it can punish anyone it catches buying, selling or paying.

Which countries have banned bitcoin

In November 2021, the US Library of Congress counted nine countries with a complete ban, including China, Algeria, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iraq, Morocco and Qatar. In these countries, trading or owning crypto assets is a criminal offense. 42 countries had an implicit ban: banks and financial firms were not allowed to deal with crypto assets. In 2018 the figures were 8 and 15 countries.

Several bans were later lifted:

• India: in 2018 the central bank banned banks from any dealings with crypto assets. The Supreme Court struck this down as disproportionate on Mar 4, 2020. Since 2022, India has taxed crypto gains at 30% instead of banning them.
• Nigeria: in February 2021 the central bank prohibited banks from holding accounts for crypto trading. Trading moved to person-to-person platforms. In December 2023 the central bank withdrew the ban.

Other countries go the opposite way. El Salvador made bitcoin legal tender in 2021; since 2025, merchants no longer have to accept it. In March 2025, the US set up a strategic bitcoin reserve by executive order. Which countries hold how many bitcoin is shown in the article Countries with bitcoin reserves.

China: what a bitcoin ban really does

China is the toughest case and the best test. In 2017 it banned domestic exchanges. In May 2021 the government announced a crackdown on mining. On Sep 24, 2021, the central bank and other authorities declared all business with crypto assets to be illegal financial activity.

What happened next:

• Mining: according to University of Cambridge data, China's share of the world's computing power fell to 0% in July and August 2021. From September 2021 it was back at around 20%, from miners who kept working in secret.
• Network: computing power collapsed, and the difficulty fell 27.94% in July 2021, more than ever since 2010. Blocks kept coming anyway; the network ran without interruption. By the end of 2021, computing power had recovered in the US, Kazakhstan and Russia.
• Price: on the day before the declaration of Sep 24, 2021, bitcoin closed at $44’867, on the day itself at $42’807, down 4.6%. A week later, on Oct 1, 2021, it stood at $48’140.

For holders in China this meant: their bitcoin stayed their bitcoin. But the way back into yuan became hard and legally risky. That is the real danger of a ban: not losing the coins, but losing the legal ways to buy, sell and use them.

Can bitcoin be banned in Germany?

In Germany bitcoin is legal. The financial regulator BaFin has classified bitcoin as a unit of account since 2013; since 2020, crypto assets have counted as financial instruments under the Banking Act (Kreditwesengesetz). Since Dec 30, 2024, the Crypto Markets Supervision Act (Kryptomärkteaufsichtsgesetz) has implemented the EU's MiCA regulation. Anyone who trades or holds bitcoin for others needs a license. Anyone who buys and holds bitcoin for themselves does not.

A bitcoin ban for private individuals would have to go through the Bundestag, and it would have to stand up to the Basic Law (Grundgesetz, GG):

• Property (Art. 14 GG): bitcoin you hold are protected assets. A ban on owning or selling them would be a serious interference. Expropriation is only allowed with compensation.
• Freedom of occupation (Art. 12 GG): a ban would hit exchanges, custodians and miners who operate today with BaFin's permission.
• Proportionality: the state would have to show that milder means are not enough. These already exist: identity checks, reporting obligations, supervision.

That doesn't make a ban impossible. But it would be a long, public road with foreseeable lawsuits, not a decision overnight. On top of that comes EU law: with MiCA, the EU has created a single market for crypto assets. A single country banning it would conflict with this framework.

The EU: rules instead of a ban

The EU has decided against a ban several times. On Mar 14, 2022, the European Parliament's economic affairs committee rejected a proposal that would effectively have banned proof of work, and with it bitcoin mining, in the EU. MiCA was passed without this clause. What the regulation changes for exchanges, custody and your own wallet is explained in MiCA and bitcoin.

It is getting stricter on anonymity. These rules are coming or already apply:

None of this bans bitcoin itself. The rules hit providers, not your own wallet. Transfers between two of your own wallets remain free. How the digital euro fits into this picture, and why it is no substitute for bitcoin, is in The digital euro and bitcoin.

Bitcoin ban in Switzerland

Switzerland built bitcoin into its law early. The 2021 DLT Act regulates, among other things, what happens to crypto assets when a custodian goes bankrupt: they then belong to the customers and do not fall into the bankruptcy estate. FINMA supervises providers; bitcoin holders need no license.

A ban would have to go through parliament and could be put to the people by referendum. The Federal Constitution protects property (Art. 26 BV) and economic freedom (Art. 27 BV). Politicians have taken no step toward a ban. How bitcoin is taxed in Switzerland is in Bitcoin taxes in Switzerland.

Bitcoin ban in Austria

In Austria, MiCA applies as in Germany; the supervisor is the FMA. Since 2022, Austria has taxed crypto assets at 27.5%, like stocks. A country that has just built bitcoin into its tax system is not planning a ban.

Legally, property in Austria is protected by the Basic Law on the General Rights of Nationals (Art. 5 StGG) and the European Convention on Human Rights (Art. 1 of Protocol No. 1); there the Convention has constitutional rank. It applies in Germany too. Expropriation without compensation would therefore hardly be sustainable. Tax details: Bitcoin taxes in Austria.

The 1933 gold ban: the historical parallel

Critics like to point to the US: on Apr 5, 1933, President Roosevelt banned private ownership of gold coins and gold bars with Executive Order 6102. Citizens had to hand in their gold to the banks by May 1, 1933 at a price of $20.67 per ounce. In 1934 the government raised the price to $35. The ban lasted until the end of 1974.

The lesson from it has two sides:

• A government can ban a store of value, even in a democracy, if it sees it as a threat to its currency.
• What it mainly reached was what lay in banks. Gold in bank safe deposit boxes was easy to find, coins at home hardly at all. Bitcoin is the same: what sits on an exchange is visible and within reach. What you hold yourself is not.

One difference remains: in 1933 the dollar was tied to gold. The government needed the gold for its currency. Bitcoin has no such role in the monetary system of the euro or franc, as The fiat money system explained simply shows.

What you can do as a holder

No holder can prevent a law. But you can be set up so that stricter rules don't take you by surprise.

1. Hold it yourself. Bitcoin on an exchange is a claim against a company that authorities can freeze or close. How to store bitcoin safely yourself is shown in the custody guide.
2. Document every purchase. Date, amount, price, provider. If you can prove where your coins came from, you get through every withdrawal and every check.
3. Pay your taxes. Legal, taxed bitcoin are the best protection against any later proceedings. The rules in Germany are explained in the guide Bitcoin taxes in Germany.
4. Know your ways to sell. More than one exchange, plus knowing how to buy person to person. If one provider disappears, you are not stuck.
5. Only hold what you can sit through for years. Ban headlines have pushed the price down briefly again and again. If you don't have to sell, you don't have to react to them.

How low the price could fall on a given day according to the model, you can work out yourself here:

How trend and floor are calculated is in the methodology. Today's status is shown by the Power Law analysis. If you want to learn the basics of custody and security step by step, you'll find them in the academy, stage 2. All articles on law and taxes are collected in the category Law, taxes and practice.