Mining Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in Venezuela is still pretty difficult. More specifically, the local government isn’t too keen on this concept by any means. Despite this opposition, mining Bitcoin in the country isn’t slowing down, though. Given the country’s difficult financial position, that is only to be expected.Cheap electricity brings all miners to the yard, that much is evident.People are willing to risk jail time because of their interest in cryptocurrency.
Venezuela is not a fun country to live in right now, for obvious reasons. Hyperinflation is ravaging the country as we speak.That situation has only grown worse as more time progressed, unfortunately. It forces the local population to look for other financial tools to keep them afloat. Right now, that is pretty difficult, to say the least. In fact, Bitcoin may be one of the few viable options in this regard. Unfortunately, the local government doesn’t like Bitcoin all that much.
Cryptocurrency Mining Picks up in Venezuela
More specifically, the government doesn’t like people who mine Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Electricity is very cheap in Venezuela, which makes it profitable to mine Bitcoin. However, all electricity is state-sponsored, which is a thorn in the side the government. In fact, every time a mining operation is shut down, the government claims people are stealing electricity. It’s hard to say that is an inaccurate judgment, though. It creates a very uneasy ecosystem, to say the least.
Even though people struggle to get food on the table, electricity is far easier to come by. With that electricity, Venezuelans turn to Bitcoin mining as a way to get food on the table. It makes a lot of sense on paper, but it’s a bit different in reality. With the government actively cracking down on mining operations, surviving is not easy by any means. Most miners have to go far deeper underground than ever before. Multiple people have been arrested for being involved in Bitcoin mining in recent months.
It is worth mentioning Bitcoin is not the only currency being mined in Venezuela. Ethereum mining is also a lot more popular than ever before. It uses the same principle but more readily accessible hardware to do so. A few graphics cards can mine Ethereum, whereas Bitcoin mining requires ASICS. Those are both very expensive and difficult to get past customers. Graphics cards, on the other hand, don’t pose that much of a problem these days. It will be interesting to see how this situation evolves in the future.
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