Since China banned the mining of Bitcoin (BTC), Kazakhstan has become a territory of magnitude regarding hashrate production. Between opportunity and fear of scarcity, the government sometimes adapts in a contradictory way.
13% of the global hashrate came from Kazakhstan last December. The country has become a global mining hub thanks to its low electricity rates. Since then, the government seems to hesitate between strong regulation and the desire to capitalize on this new industry.
This week, it was regulation that took precedence. The government was considering drastically increasing the taxes on Bitcoin miners, potentially multiplying them by five. It is now done: the text, which has been approved, provides for increasingly high taxes per consumption bracket.
JUST IN: 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan’s President has signed a law imposing higher tax rates on #crypto miners.
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) July 13, 2022
Beyond recovering part of the funds generated by this industry, the government’s maneuver also serves the electricity network. Last winter, politicians claimed that mining activity had led to power shortages.
It is not the first time a government has taken steps in this direction. Yesterday Texas asked Bitcoin (BTC) mining farms to shut down, the heat wave causing overconsumption of electricity in the American state.
The eternal question of the electricity consumption of Bitcoin is therefore still posed. The topic sparks particularly heated debate within the crypto community, and these real-life examples show that it’s an aspect of the larger cryptocurrency that will continue to be discussed.
