US Blocks Chinese-Backed Crypto Mining Firm From Owning Land Near Wyoming Missile Base

President Joe Biden has issued an order blocking MineOne, a majority Chinese-backed crypto mining firm from owning land near a strategic nuclear missile base in Wyoming due to security concerns.

In an announcement, the White House said there is credible evidence that MineOne Partners Limited, a British Virgin Islands company is majority-owned by Chinese nationals. Through the firm’s acquisition of real estate, it is located within 1 mile of Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, 3 miles west of Cheyenne, Wyoming. A divestment order has been approved and the firm has had to shut down its operations.

According to the U.S. government, MineOne acquired the property in June 2022 for cryptocurrency mining operations near the nuclear missile base.

The statement explained that due to the proximity of the business to a strategic missile base the presence of specialized and foreign-sourced equipment is capable of facilitating surveillance and espionage activities. This in turn presents a national security risk to the U.S. – and due to this, the U.S. government has blocked ownership.

Legal Requirements Not Met

The transaction was not filed with the regulatory body, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) until after the transaction team investigated the property sale as a result of a public tip. CFIUS is responsible for reviewing the national security implications of foreign investments.

The U.S. and China have a global hegemonic great power rivalry. Since 2023, China and the U.S. are the world’s largest economies by nominal GDP.

U.S.-China Trade War

The Wall Street Journal reports that as the 2024 presidential election race heats up, the U.S. trade fight with China is increasingly becoming front and centre. Most recently Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, as both President Biden and former President Donald Trump call for more trade restrictions on China, and Beijing hits some U.S. imports with new levies.

Although crypto mining is legal in the U.S. many authorities have been voicing their opposition to it due to the extensive use of energy use and environmental pollution.