Chinese Bitcoin Miners Ponder Operations Overseas amid Potential Ban

Recently, various reports have been suggesting that China’s crackdown on cryptocurrencies will extend to mining, as state-run Sichuan Electric Power Corporation reportedly distributed a circular ordering grid-connected hydropower stations to stop supplying low-cost electricity to bitcoin mining operations. As reported by CCN, the report has been debunked as the company admitted it made several mistakes, including using unverified claims, on its circular.

Later on, state-owned news publication Caixin revealed that the government didn’t plan on banning bitcoin mining or any activity surrounding cryptocurrency mining yet. Nevertheless, a recent report by the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reveals that the country’s bitcoin miners are considering moving their operations overseas to make sure they can stay in business.

China’s crackdown on cryptocurrency started earlier this year, as regulators made it illegal to conduct and participate in initial coin offerings (ICOs), and then forced cryptocurrency exchanges to shut their doors. This now led Chinese miners to take precautions.

China has become the undisputed leader in bitcoin mining. As it became more competitive, few ordinary bitcoin users managed to make a profit, and hashpower was then pooled in large farms centralized in regions that offer its operators competitive advantages such as cheap labor and low-cost electricity. The country is now home to various large bitcoin mining operations, but that may soon change.

The South China Morning Post spoke to a cryptocurrency miner, Cui, 43, who’s preparing for the possibility of having to move his operation overses.

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