Two American countries could ban Bitcoin. Costa Rica will propose a bill that restricts the use of cryptocurrency in daily transactions and Paraguay is in favor of eliminating the mining of this digital currency, since the high consumption of electrical energy affects the service to the population.

Bitcoin at risk in Costa Rica

In the case of Costa Rica, according to Cointelegraph, representative Johana Obando Bonilla has highlighted the introduction two years ago in the National Assembly of a comprehensive bill to legitimize the use of cryptocurrencies in the country.

Recently, discussions have advanced about limiting the ability of Costa Ricans to freely use cryptocurrency as a means of payment for daily transactions.

The controls would be focused on aspects such as “the integration of standard know-your-customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) controls by companies in the sector.”

Although Congresswoman Obando has emphasized the need for a legal framework that provides security and prevents money laundering, she has also warned that the new regulation could encourage the emergence of a clandestine market.

The Central American country seeks to establish the rules “for the exercise of activities related to the new class of assets”, as well as the “guidelines for the use and taxation of mining, marketing, custody, payments and other activities with digital currencies.”

Paraguay wants to limit bitcoin mining

Authorities in the country are weighing the consumption of electrical energy from BTC mining and how it affects the service to the population. In this sense, on April 4, legislators introduced a bill arguing that bitcoin mining steals energy and interrupts electrical service.

Although the restriction could cause the country to lose more than USD 200 million annually, if approved “it will last 180 days or until new laws are enacted and the national electricity grid operator can guarantee that it supplies enough energy.”

According to Hashlabs Mining co-founder and chief mining strategist Jaran Mellerud, “banning bitcoin mining could cost Paraguay more than $200 million a year, assuming the country has 500 megawatts of legal miners paying $0.05 per kilowatt-hour in operating expenses.”

Regarding electricity consumption, it is alleged that the Itaipú dam is the favorite place for mining, “since it supplies all of Paraguay’s local electricity needs and leaves a large surplus that can be used.”

In fact, the surplus produced by the dam “has been exported to Brazil at low prices. However, Mellerud noted that a wave of bitcoin miners has flocked to such electricity, paying slightly higher prices in recent months.

The legislators argue that since February, they have counted 50 electricity supply interruptions related to the illegal exploitation of these sources of electricity for BTC mining. On the subject, the National Electricity Administration of Paraguay “estimates that each cryptocurrency mining operation has caused damage and losses of up to USD 94,900 and that the total annual losses in the Alto Paraná area – where the Itaipú power plant is located – could amount to USD 60 million.”

M.Pino

With information from Cointelegraph and Diariobitcoin

(Reference image source: Michael Förtsch in Unsplash)

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La entrada Bitcoin at risk in Costa Rica and Paraguay apareció primero en Bitfinance.

According to data from the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index (cbeci), the electricity consumption of the cryptocurrency plummeted 60 % from the all-time high reached above 143 terawatt-hours (twh).

No such low numbers were observed in terms of electricity consumption for the digital asset since November last year.

Consumption is estimated to be around 67 twh for the moment, while the upper limit of maximum consumption or total electricity expenditure is located at 162 twh below the 500 averaged in May.

The estimate of the lower limit, which corresponds to the absolute minimum total electricity expenditure based on the most favorable hypothesis that all miners always use the most efficient equipment on the market, has also decreased from 47 TWh to 24 TWh.

Despite the fact that regulators in various countries continue to blame bitcoin for excessive energy consumption and the associated environmental catastrophe, its electricity consumption has recently decreased massively, according to some data.

K. Tovar

Source: Cointelegraph

La entrada Electricity consumption of bitcoin begins to fall apareció primero en Bitfinance.

Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, recently signed a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency miners, which will impose an additional tax for the use of electricity.

According to the new law, these new rates would take effect from January 2022. This decision is made due to the boom that digital assets have had in the region.

Specifically, mining users will now have to pay approximately $ 0.00233 per kilowatt-hour to continue using their equipment.

Albert Rau, chairman of the regional development and economic reform committee, said the main goal of the new legislation is to regulate the crypto mining industry and “bring it out of the shadows.”

Kazakhstan has become a major destination for cryptocurrency mining operations. Data from the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index, Kazakhstan is the fourth largest country in the world in terms of its total share of the Bitcoin hash rate after China, the United States, and Russia.

K. Tovar

Source: Cointelegraph

La entrada Kazakhstan to apply new tax to crypto miners in 2022 apareció primero en Bitfinance.

Iran announced that it will restrict bitcoin mining until September, due to the high electricity consumption that this can generate in the coming months.

According to the president of the nation, Hassan Rouhani, this activity will be stopped until September 22 in order to avoid power cuts in the country.

Faced with this situation that is coming, the owners of farms and mining centers in the country said they did not agree with this measure. The country’s opposition assures that electricity cuts are repeatedly generated by having a very outdated consumption network.

Bitcoin mining has been one of Iran’s “reliefs” in recent years. A relief in dealing with sanctions from the West, especially from the United States.

This activity has allowed them to generate hundreds of millions of dollars (almost 5% of all bitcoin comes from the Middle Eastern country), without having to depend on other countries.

K. Tovar

Source: Xataka

La entrada Iran restricts cryptocurrency mining apareció primero en Bitfinance.