u.today
CNBC has reported that Bitcoin miners now openly picking the U.S. as the top destination, as per the official data released by Cambridge University. The U.S. leadership here has increased by 428 percent since last year.
Data just out from Cambridge shows the U.S. is now the world's #1 destination for #bitcoin miners, beating out China for the first time. Meanwhile China's share of global hashrate drops to zero for July 2021.https://t.co/vQMc9sd606
— MacKenzie Sigalos (@KenzieSigalos) October 13, 2021
U.S. eclipses China for Bitcoin miners
CNBC has shared that as of July, almost 40 percent of Bitcoin’s hashrate is produced by miners located in the USA. Since September last year, this demonstrates a staggering 428 percent increase.
Now, America has taken over from China as the leader in the crypto mining field. The Chinese crackdown on crypto mining in the spring has made it possible. Although, back then, the mining ban forced fifty percent of crypto miners switch off their rigs almost overnight.
Mining companies started relocating from China on a big scale, fleeing to more friendly jurisdictions with cheap electricity – “the great mining migration” – with lots of them going to Canada and Kazakhstan but the majority picked the USA.
According to Boaz Sobrano fintech analyst from London, China does not control Bitcoin mining any more.
Among the states in the U.S. that offer low-cost energy are Texas, Washington and New York (hydroenergy and nuclear energy) and Miami.
“Kazakhstan is a temporary stopover”
This post-Soviet country has given shelter to 18.1 percent of all global crypto miners. They produce cheap energy from its numerous coal mines, however, this also means a high percentage of carbon footprint.
According to mining experts who have talked to CNBC, Kazakhstan is only a temporary stopover for miners who plan to migrate from China further West.
Besides, as 2022, the country will begin taxing cryptocurrency miners, according to the law signed by its president, which will also reduce the interest of miners to this location, experts believe.
Chinese imposes a harder crypto ban
In September, Chinese government announced another major crackdown on the crypto industry – this time, hitting miners again and exchanges. All cryptocurrency transactions have been deemed illegal and now authorities are seeking for a legal way to implement these prohibitions.
Meanwhile, crypto-related companies are leaving mainland China one after another. Last week, U.Today reported that over twenty companies were withdrawing from the country or relocating from there.
This includes many crypto exchanges, Huobi among them. Today, Binance trading giant announced that it is ceasing all over-the-counter crypto trading of crypto against yuan.