Russia has banned crypto mining operations in ten regions for a period of six years. Additional bans may be instituted when energy demand is peaking.

The Russian government has banned crypto mining in ten regions for a period of six years, according to reporting by the state-owned news agency Tass. Russia has cited the industry’s high power consumption rates as the primary reason behind the ban. Crypto is particularly power-hungry, as mining operations already account for nearly 2.5 percent of US energy use.

  • Mubelotix
    184·
    3 days ago

    Knowing Russia has been endorsing mining for years, that means their economy is so severely damaged it’s on brink of collapsing

    • Gamma@beehaw.orgEnglish
      8·
      3 days ago

      It’s only been legal to mine in Russia for a few months, and you still have to register with the government if you use over a certain amount of energy to monitor consumption. How is that endorsing?

      Edit: Ah, it’s part of their attempt to get around sanctions:

      “As part of the experimental regime, it is possible to use bitcoins, which we had mined here in Russia (in foreign trade transactions)," Siluanov told Russia 24 television channel.
      “Such transactions are already occurring. We believe they should be expanded and developed further. I am confident this will happen next year,” he said, adding that international payments in digital currencies represent the future.