Georgian Citizens Forced to Stop Crypto Mining amidst Ongoing Energy Crisis

Crypto mining is back in the news this week, as the crypto market readies for a U.S Congress subcommittee hearing on cryptos tomorrow.

While regulators across the world are ramping up activity in the crypto space, concerns over the impact of crypto mining on the environment has also been on the rise.

Chatter on crypto mining had abated following China’s Bitcoin (BTC) mining ban last summer. At the turn of the year, however, regulatory chatter has surged.

Tomorrow’s U.S Congress subcommittee hearing on cryptos will likely focus on mining and the environment and regulatory aspects of cryptos. As of August 2021, the U.S was the largest Bitcoin mining nation, according to Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance.

Russia and the CIS Bitcoin Hashrate Distribution

The world’s 2^nd largest Bitcoin mining nation was Kazakhstan, which accounted for 18.10% of the Bitcoin hashrate. Other nations forming the Commonwealth of Independent States, accounted for very little of the remaining hashrate. Other than the Russian Federation, which accounted for 11.23% of the global hashrate, the remaining independent states barely featured. In fact, Georgia and the Ukraine were the most prominent, with hashrates of 0.18% and 0.13% respectively.

With U.S Congress holding a subcommittee hearing on cryptocurrencies tomorrow, Bitcoin mining remain in the spotlight.

The U.S government has a goal of being emissions free by 2050. An outright ban on Bitcoin mining is a possible outcome to tomorrow’s hearing. Such an outcome would force miners to relocate to other crypto friendly jurisdictions. Some consider Russia and the CIS as viable alternatives.

At the start of the year, another CIS member state, Kosovo, was forced to impose crypto mining ban as a result of an ongoing energy crisis.

Just last week, news hit the wires of Binance (BNB) beefing up its Russia and CIS team. The strategic move by Binance suggests that Russia and the CIS could be the next crypto growth story. With Kazakhstan the world’s 2^nd largest Bitcoin mining nation, miners may also look to other CIS member states when considering their proximity to China.

Georgians Forced to Take an Oath Against Crypto Mining

This week, news hit the wires of Georgian residents being forced to “pledge a holy oath that they will not mine cryptocurrency”. According to the report, crypto mining has been on the rise as a result of a slump in tourism. With certain parts of Georgia enjoying free electricity, the threat of an increase in crypto mining has caused the government to take action. Similarly to Kosovo, the government forced pledges in a bid to address energy shortages.