Bitcoin Mining
US Treasury Dept lists crypto mining firm in latest sanctions against Russia
The United States Treasury Department has added Russia-based crypto mining services provider BitRiver and several subsidiaries as firms facilitating the evasion of sanctions. In a Wednesday announcement, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, said it was taking action against BitRiver AG as well as 10 of its Russia-based subsidiaries, naming the companies as ‘Specially Designated Nationals’. Firms and individuals listed as such by OFAC have their assets blocked and “U.S. persons are generally prohibited from dealing with them.” According to the U.S. Treasury, the actions against BitRiver and its subsidiaries were based on them allegedly facilitating “sanctions evasion for Russian entities,” hinting crypto may have played a role in helping Russia’s govern...
Iran to stiffen penalties for illegal use of subsidized energy in crypto mining
The Iranian government will increase penalties for the use of subsidized energy in crypto mining. The move marks another step in the tightening of mining regulation in the country that had faced energy shortages in recent years. On April 16, the Tehran Times reported, citing the country’s Power Generation, Distribution, and Transmission company, that the government plans to drastically increase the fines rates for the mining operators who use subsidized electricity. The company’s representative Mohammad Khodadadi Bohlouli specified: “Any use of subsidized electricity, intended for households, industrial, agricultural and commercial subscribers, for mining cryptocurrency is prohibited.” According to Bohlouli, the fines for the use of subsidized energy in mining will rise by...
BTC stocks correlation ‘not what we want’ — 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week
Bitcoin (BTC) starts the second week of April with a whimper as bulls struggle to retain support above $40,000. After a refreshingly low-volatility weekend, the latest weekly close saw market nerves return, and in classic style, BTC/USD fell in the final hours of April 10. There is a feeling of being caught between two stools for the average hodler currently — macro forces promise major trend shifts but are being slow to play out. At the same time, “serious” buyer demand is also absent from crypto assets more broadly. However, those on the inside show no hint of doubt about the future, as evidenced by all-time high Bitcoin network fundamentals and more. The combination of these opposing factors is price action that simply does not seem to know where to go next. Can something change in the ...
Seven times Bitcoin miners made the world a better place
What do a swimming pool, beef jerky, a caravan, timber, animal waste, a Guatemalan lake and a high school have in common? They’ve all been saved by Bitcoin (BTC) mining. From reusing “waste” heat to getting the job done — to receiving a cool blast of air to dehydrate meat, to cleaning up pollutants, Bitcoin mining does more than just secure the network. Here’s a round-up of seven times Bitcoin mining lent a hand or simply made the world a better place. Free Bitcoin mining education in Washington Sustainable Bitcoin mining company Merkle Standard has taken Bitcoin mining education into its own hands. In partnership with Bitmain, they recently gifted the latest in Bitcoin mining technology to Newport High School, a high school in Washington state. Plus, they donated $10,000...
Blockstream and Block Inc to build solar Bitcoin mining facility powered by Tesla technology
On Friday, cryptocurrency storage company Blockstream and Block Inc. (formerly Square) announced the construction of a solar-powered Bitcoin (BTC) mining facility in Texas. As told by Blockstream, the mining site will be outfitted with 3.8 megawatts (MW) of electrical capacity using Tesla’s Solar photovoltaic cell array and 12 an MWh Megapack. Manufactured by Tesla Energy, Megapack is a powerful lithium-ion battery that provides energy storage and support. In context, one of the leading publicly listed Bitcoin mining companies, Hut 8 Mining, has about 209 MW in total contracted mining capacity. The purpose of the venture is to investigate the feasibility of operating a zero-emission energy Bitcoin mine. Blockstream and Block began collaborating on the project last June, with Blo...
One-fifth of global Bitcoin hash rate is now controlled by listed companies
A recent report has shown that nearly one-fifth of the total share of Bitcoin’s (BTC) hash rate now belongs to publicly-listed mining companies. The report, published by Arcane Research, details that publicly-listed Bitcoin mining companies now account for 19% of Bitcoin’s total hash rate, growing considerably from a mere 3% in January l. Public miner’s share of BTC hash rate The term hash rate refers to the total computing power used by a miner’s computing equipment to confirm a transaction. A higher hash rate ensures increased protection against double-spending attacks, which is the process of reversing BTC transactions over the blockchain by contributing to at least 51% of the BTC hash rate. While there were only a small number of public mining companies at the beginning ...
Twitter debates the role of renewable energy in Bitcoin mining
It all started with a tweet by Dennis Porter, podcast host and self-described Bitcoin advocate, that led to a heady discussion about renewable energy and the role of Bitcoin miners. Porter asserted that Bitcoin (BTC) creates incentives to build out renewables, but environmental scientist Peter Gleick rebuffed the statement as a “self-serving lie.” The comments section got heated when Nic Carter, Castle Island Ventures general partner and Coin Metrics co-founder, entered the chat and called out Gleick for allegedly not knowing anything about energy. Tell me you don’t know anything about energy without telling me — nic no credentials carter (@nic__carter) April 4, 2022 Carter proceeded to explain how energy markets work and defend cryptocurrency use in a thread o...
Twitter debates the role of renewable energy in Bitcoin mining
It all started with a tweet by Dennis Porter, podcast host and self-described Bitcoin advocate, that led to a heady discussion about renewable energy and the role of Bitcoin miners. Porter asserted that Bitcoin (BTC) creates incentives to build out renewables, but environmental scientist Peter Gleick rebuffed the statement as a “self-serving lie.” The comments section got heated when Nic Carter, Castle Island Ventures general partner and Coin Metrics co-founder, entered the chat and called out Gleick for allegedly not knowing anything about energy. Tell me you don’t know anything about energy without telling me — nic no credentials carter (@nic__carter) April 4, 2022 Carter proceeded to explain how energy markets work and defend cryptocurrency use in a thread o...
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change calls cryptocurrency CO2 emissions a ‘growing concern’
The United Nations arm aimed at assessing the science related to climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, or IPCC, has named crypto among technologies that may require greater energy demands. According to a report released on Monday, the IPCC said cryptocurrencies, as part of the infrastructure around data centers and information technology systems related to blockchain, had the potential to be a “major global source” of carbon dioxide emissions. The group said that estimated CO2 emissions between 2010 and 2019 suggested there was only a 50% probability of limiting the rise of the average temperature of Earth by 1.5°C, based on the remaining carbon budget from 2020. “The energy requirements of cryptocurrencies is also a growing concern, although considerable unce...
‘Green oasis’ for Bitcoin mining: Norway has almost 1% of global BTC hash rate
Bitcoin (BTC) mining in Norway is 100% renewable and “flourishing,” according to a report by Arcane Research. “A green oasis of renewable energy,” Norway contributes almost 1% to the global hash rate and is almost entirely powered by hydropower. Using data from the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index and by mapping out the mining facilities, the report concludes that Norway contributes 0.77% to the Bitcoin total global hash rate. By way of comparison, Norway’s population of 5 million contributes a tenth of that—or 0.07% of the global population. Crucially, according to the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE), Norway’s electricity mix is 100% renewable, with 88% hydro and 10% wind. That means Bitcoin miners in Norway are solely using “green” energy....
Just 2 million Bitcoin left to mine: Bitcoin hits the 19 million milestone
The 19th millionth Bitcoin (BTC) was mined on Friday, a landmark occasion for the number one cryptocurrency. Nineteen million Bitcoin are now in circulation, with just 2 million Bitcoin yet to be minted (or mined) until roughly the year 2140. In block 730002, mined by SBI Crypto, the 19 millionth Bitcoin entered circulation. SBI Crypto earned 6.32 BTC, roughly $293,000 for the trouble in transaction fees and block reward. A momentous occasion, the Bitcoin community was quick to celebrate the milestone event. The 19,000,000th bitcoin was just mined. Only 2 million more bitcoin to go. — Pomp (@APompliano) April 1, 2022 The CEO of possibly one of the world’s most ESGfriendly Bitcoin miners, Kjetil Hove Pettersen of Kryptovault, told Cointelegraph “we have only two...
Bitcoin miner Riot Blockchain files prospectus for $500M stock sale
In a document filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday, Bitcoin (BTC) mining company Riot Blockchain announced that it would be selling up to $500 million worth of common stock to finance general corporate expenses, such as working capital, repayment of corporate obligations, capital expenditures and acquisitions, and investing in existing and future projects. After the offering, the company would have more than 139 million units of common stock outstanding, giving it a market cap of close to $3 billion at Friday’s prices. The company is authorized to issue 170 million units of common stock in total. RIOT’s share price has experienced volatility over the past 12 months. Source: TradingView Currently, Riot Blockchain operates a flee...
