In our digest, we reviewed several important crypto-industry news over the past week:
- Russia may become a leader in mining after regulation;
- Zhaparov suggests using stablecoins to strengthen ties between Kyrgyzstan and Russia;
- Russian Ministry of Finance: Cryptoindustry is the key to economic development;
- Israel’s central bank launches testing of digital shekel;
- Russian State Duma prepares to consider a law on cryptocurrency mining;
- Cryptocurrency owners on the rise: 562 million globally, 9.26 million in Russia;
- China fights public display of crypto wealth.
Now for more details. Reading time: 10 minutes.
Russia may become a leader in mining after the adoption of regulation
According to RBC Crypto, the revenue of leading Russian cryptocurrency mining companies in 2023 amounted to more than 20 billion rubles, making Russia the world’s second-largest country in terms of computing power in mining, behind the United States.
In the context of metrics for measuring the size of the cryptocurrency mining market, in Russia, the main metric is megawatts — the power allocated to host equipment. In the US, on the other hand, the share of mining companies in the global bitcoin hashrate is estimated by the number of hashes per second.
In Russia, industrial miners operate on a hosted model, placing and maintaining client equipment in data centers, while in the US, companies mine bitcoins independently and keep them on the balance sheet.
The State Duma is currently considering bills to regulate the mining industry in Russia. Once a balanced regulation is passed, Russian companies will be able to mine cryptocurrency independently and operate more transparently.
According to reports, only those legal entities and entrepreneurs who have been included in the relevant register will be able to engage in cryptocurrency mining in Russia, provided that they do not exceed the energy consumption limits set by the government.
Zhaparov proposes to use stablecoins to strengthen ties between Kyrgyzstan and Russia
Akylbek Zhaparov, the head of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, suggested using stablecoins to strengthen economic ties with Russia. In his opinion, mutual settlements between the countries can be made through a special digital currency tied to gold.
Zhaparov’s report notes that the idea of using cryptocurrency instead of the dollar is not new and was proposed by him many years ago. The politician argues that if his idea had been adopted earlier, the country’s economic position would have been strengthened by bypassing the dollar.
Zhaparov also emphasized that trading in stablecoins with other countries, including Russia, is already underway and business, in his opinion, is ahead of the government on this issue. He urged the government to be more flexible and quick in making decisions about cryptocurrency.
In Kyrgyzstan, the cryptocurrency market has experienced a strong rise in recent years. The country’s National Bank has already issued 63 licenses to cryptocurrency companies. Kambar-Ata HPP-2 was authorized to host mining equipment, for which $20 million was allocated. However, despite the development of the crypto-industry, buying and selling goods for cryptocurrency is still prohibited in Kyrgyzstan.
Russian Ministry of Finance: Cryptoindustry is the key to economic development
Russian Deputy Finance Minister Ivan Chebeskov, at the Kazan Cryptoforum 2024 forum on blockchain technologies and crypto-industry, emphasized the role of the crypto-industry in the development of the country’s economy. Chebeskov expressed confidence that the crypto industry is the advanced engine of Russia’s economic and digital development.
The Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation has been working on the formation of appropriate regulation of the crypto market for several years. This is done not only to fulfill the set tasks, but also out of confidence in the prospects of the cryptoindustry. Chebeskov explains the importance of this work by the presence of many citizens with various digital assets, including crypto-assets and digital currencies.
The deputy minister emphasized that the main task is to protect the rights of citizens from unscrupulous platforms. However, in addition to this, he sees crypto-assets as a huge potential for use in investment projects.
Chebeskov also noted that the Russian Finance Ministry is discussing the issue of interoperability between Russian and international digital financial asset platforms. This becomes important given the steady trend of growing activity of the country’s citizens in the cryptoasset market, as the Bank of Russia reported earlier.
Israel’s central bank launches testing of digital shekel
The Central Bank of Israel (BOI) announced the launch of a pilot program to issue a digital shekel as part of the jointly created Rosalind service with the UK central bank. BOI Deputy Chairman Andrew Abir emphasized that the process of creating the digital currency will be transparent and citizens will be aware of every step of its integration into the country’s financial system.
BoI’s program includes applications, access to the new network for selected projects, and presentations to bank officials. The Rosalind service, co-created with the UK central bank, is a prototype interface for the central bank’s digital currency, and participants will be able to create online payment systems.
Participants in the Digital Shekel Challenge will compete to develop innovative uses for the digital shekel, including split payments, microtransactions and other financial services related to the central bank’s digital currency. The projects will be judged on the criteria of innovativeness and relevance to the country’s economic needs.
Andrew Abir said that the competition of the central bank’s digital currency with banks will lead to positive changes in the country’s economy. From his point of view, the digital shekel project will be supported by citizens, as many of them have long expressed dissatisfaction with the banking system.
The Russian State Duma is preparing to consider a law on cryptocurrency mining
The Russian State Duma plans to consider a bill on cryptocurrency mining by the end of the spring session, said Anton Gorelkin, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications. According to Gorelkin, the lack of relevant legislation leads to significant losses in the budget — up to 100 billion rubles a year.
Gorelkin noted that the history of the bill on mining is complicated and confusing. Despite this, he expressed hope that the law will be passed before the end of the current session. He also emphasized that Russia ranks second in the world in terms of mining and could become a major exporter of cryptocurrencies in the future.
The draft law was recently submitted to the State Duma taking into account the wishes of specialized agencies and is expected to be considered in June. The lack of regulation in this area has led to significant energy shortages in some regions and the emergence of cryptocurrency pyramid schemes.
Cryptocurrency ownership growth: 562 million globally, 9.26 million in Russia
In 2024, the number of cryptocurrency owners in the world will reach an astounding 562 million, representing 6.8% of the global population, according to a report by fintech company Triple A. This represents a 34% increase from the previous year and means that one in thirteen people on the planet owns a cryptocurrency.
The growth is particularly impressive in Asia, which has long been a leader in the number of crypto investors. In 2023, 268 million cryptocurrency owners were registered in Asia, and in 2024 their number increased to 327 million, an increase of almost 22%.
In Russia, the number of cryptocurrency owners is also growing, but the growth rate is much slower: over the year, the number of owners of digital assets increased by 5.9% to 9.26 million. This represents 6.4% of the country’s population, which is less than the global average.
Cryptocurrencies are expected to be used by hundreds of millions of people in every region of the planet in the coming years. This shows that digital assets are becoming increasingly integrated into everyday life and occupy an important place in the global financial system.
China fights public display of crypto-wealth
China has launched an active crackdown on the public display of crypto-wealth and luxury lifestyles on social media. The country’s Internet regulators have declared the public display of wealth illegal, which has led to the blocking of a number of profiles of famous people.
Among the blocked accounts was that of Wang Hongquanxing, often referred to as “China’s Kim Kardashian,” with 4.3 million followers. The reason for the blocking was a violation of “self-discipline.”
The country’s regulators worry about the influence of materialism on teenagers and try to limit public displays of luxury. Thus, crypto millionaires around the world, especially in China, have a policy of restraint on social media.
However, it’s worth noting that it’s difficult to get a true picture of Chinese crypto wealth. Although the country’s investors dominate bitcoin mining and many cryptocurrency founders have become millionaires, they often prefer not to display their wealth in public.
This situation is part of a broader campaign by the Chinese government to encourage restraint and combat undesirable online trends.
Thank you for being with us. Crypto-industry news on Bit.team — always up to date.
Info taken from: https:bit.team/blog/en/cryptonews_en_03_06_2024/
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