Recently, quite a few friends around me have encountered issues with their bank cards being frozen, and after some discussion, it turns out there’s actually a lot to it.

Let’s start with the most common scenario—temporary freezes triggered by large, unfamiliar transfers. Banks are especially sensitive to these kinds of transactions now, usually opting for a “freeze first, ask questions later” approach, typically for three days. During this period, the bank will review the source of the funds, and if everything checks out, the freeze is usually lifted within three to seven days. While this can sometimes be quite inconvenient, it’s understandable given the prevalence of scams and money laundering—the banks have to protect themselves.

The real trouble comes with two other situations.

The first involves virtual currency transactions, which carry significant risk within China. If a bank discovers your account is connected to crypto trading, they may directly and permanently close your account and blacklist you, with no room for negotiation. Why are they so strict? Because virtual currency transactions aren’t legally protected in China, and the crypto space is chaotic, often serving as a channel for laundering illicit funds and scams. To distance themselves and avoid risk, banks have no choice but to take hardline action.

A word of caution here: if you do go to the bank counter to unfreeze your account, never try to hide your involvement in virtual currency transactions. Some people think the bank won’t find out if you don’t mention it, but this kind of wishful thinking usually backfires—if they discover you were hiding information, not only will you fail to unfreeze your account, but you might also get into legal trouble. Honesty is especially important when dealing with financial institutions.

The second—and worst—situation is being linked to illicit funds. In these cases, unfreezing your account is basically a matter of luck. Illicit funds are often tied to serious criminal activities, and banks freeze accounts in cooperation with law enforcement to prevent further illegal transactions. No matter how much you plead at the counter, it won’t help, because the decision isn’t in the bank’s hands.

At the end of the day, while these freezing measures may sometimes feel inconvenient, they’re fundamentally about protecting the security of the entire financial system. For ordinary people, the best approach is to keep your sources of funds clean and steer clear of any gray areas. Once your account is frozen, you risk not only losing time and money, but also damaging your credit record and enduring unnecessary stress.