Crypto mining is booming in Thailand after China imposed a ban on the activity. The country has been one of its biggest markets, and this new legislation could make it even more popular than before as people look for ways around any restrictions they may have had placed upon them by law enforcement agencies at home or government censorship programs abroad.
A recent Al Jazeera report revealed that retail crypto miners in Thailand are buying mining rigs. The reason for this? To support the country’s struggling economy and reduce unemployment rates, of course!
The ban on cryptocurrency mining in China had a huge impact to the industry. In just one year, hash rates dropped by more than 50%. In spite of all these challenges, large mining companies were able to adapt by moving their operations to other locations like the US and Canada. North America and Europe are both big targets for mining businesses, but small retail miners like Southeast Asia because it’s a profitable market.
Pongsakorn Tongtaveenan, a Thai entrepreneur, said to Al Jazeera, “Bitcoin is the gold of the digital world. But a mining rig is like gold mining stocks: you’re paid dividends according to the gold price. There are around 100,000 Thai miners now.”
The Thai government has seen an increase in demand for crypto mining machines from Shenzhen. As a result, entrepreneurs there ordered more Bitmain Antminer SJ19 Pro this year than ever before!
Crypto Mining
The world of crypto is always changing, but one thing that remains constant? The profitability of Bitcoin mining. Despite a recent cut in rewards for catching blocks with your computer’s powerful math equation-based software known as “Hashlets,” there are still many reasons to get involved if you have access and time. The cost of electricity, however, plays an important role in determining how much profit there will be from mining.
Here’s what an anonymous expert told Al Jazeera on Laos’s crypto regulations, “More than 95 percent of electricity produced is made for export, so the excess must be used otherwise it is a big waste for the government. They see an opportunity to transform that excess into millions of dollars.”
In 2021, the bitcoin mining industry saw an almost 27% increase in productivity. This jump can largely be attributed to increased production across Southeast Asia by retail crypto miners who are looking for cheap electricity rates and tax breaks on their earnings from cryptocurrency transactions.
In the last 6 months, small retail miners have gained a fair share in crypto mining. This is due largely to large companies being less welcoming towards cryptocurrency than they were before and some people feeling like investing their money into something that might actually be worth something rather than just an asset or commodity tradeable on some exchange.
