[2022-01-20] EU Markets Regulator Calls for Ban on Proof-of-Work Crypto Mining

[bbc.reporter]

I am very skeptical about this announcement especially after President Xi’s appearance in Davos’ virtual summit where the world’s leaders met to discuss the economic recovery after the coronavirus pandemic. Might this announcement and change in attitude be influenced by the long hidden arms of the policy makers in Beijing? We cannot be certain, however, it would not be shocking if the European Union followed Beijing’s ban on proof of work mining and cryptocoins.



Proof-of-work crypto mining should be banned in the European Union (EU), according to the vice chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).

However, with mining banned last year in the previously dominant China, there may be concerns among EU administrators that its previously small share of the mining industry could naturally grow as miners search for new homes.

Read in full https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2022/01/19/eu-markets-regulator-calls-for-ban-on-proof-of-work-crypto-mining-report/

[SFR10]

However, with mining banned last year in the previously dominant China, there may be concerns among EU administrators that its previously small share of the mining industry could naturally grow as miners search for new homes.

Isn't it a bit too late for such concerns? Almost all of the miners that were seeking new homes have already relocated to new locations and that has led to a small increase in the overall share of European countries!
^{- I do know there's still a small percentage of illegal miners left in China, but I highly doubt the numbers are that significant to have a big impact on any of the European countries.}

[bbc.reporter]

@SFR10. It might not be too late for the European Union if they want prevention of having those miners moving into their jurisdictions that might become a problem for them later. Also, this is good for clarity and for the miners to know in what jurisdictions they can go. I reckon the community will certainly not want a similar situation as China before the mining ban and where the government can manipulate the market through fud.

[SFR10]

Also, this is good for clarity and for the miners to know in what jurisdictions they can go.

That's true but if that gets the green light, it'd force all of the current miners to move out of the countries that are part of the European Union ^{[regardless of how small those percentages might appear, a big portion of them are actually the ones who relocated in the past year or two]}.

I reckon the community will certainly not want a similar situation as China before the mining ban and where the government can manipulate the market through fud.

You have a point, but IMO, the only country that could realistically have a similar impact to what China had in its initial attempts is only the US ^{[at the moment]}!

[slaman29]

So is this what cause the entire crypto market to crash? Bitcoin below 40k, and now even Ethereum belore $3000 (which I thought wasn't going to happen).

Just because of a call to ban PoW? And the reasoning is entirely stupid, because of climate change and don't get me wrong I think the climate needs to be a concern but if we're banning the most secure form of transacting money, why aren't we banning leisure and non-essential industry?

[Lucius]

So is this what cause the entire crypto market to crash?

I don't believe this news (which isn't really new) - Europe must ban Bitcoin mining to hit the 1.5C Paris climate goal, say Swedish regulators - dated in November 2021., it has nothing to do with the current price. Besides, this is just a proposal of an agency from Sweden that obviously has no smarter job than to blame POW mining for all the human nonsense that has happened from 1945 until today.

Just because of a call to ban PoW? And the reasoning is entirely stupid, because of climate change and don't get me wrong I think the climate needs to be a concern but if we're banning the most secure form of transacting money, why aren't we banning leisure and non-essential industry?

Of course, the reasons are stupid, because if you want to solve something, you start from the top where the biggest problem is, and then you go to those smaller problems. The fact is that crypto mining mostly consumes surplus energy that would remain unused anyway - and only one large hydropower plant in China throws away enough energy a year to make Bitcoin POW work all year round.

Politicians and their eminent servants are not necessarily intelligent people, they prove it every day.

[bbc.reporter]

Also, this is good for clarity and for the miners to know in what jurisdictions they can go.

That's true but if that gets the green light, it'd force all of the current miners to move out of the countries that are part of the European Union ^{[regardless of how small those percentages might appear, a big portion of them are actually the ones who relocated in the past year or two]}.

I reckon the community will certainly not want a similar situation as China before the mining ban and where the government can manipulate the market through fud.

You have a point, but IMO, the only country that could realistically have a similar impact to what China had in its initial attempts is only the US ^{[at the moment]}!

It can also be argued that if China’s policies towards bitcoin mining and cryptocoin trading had clarity, I speculate that the dump that began during April of last year would have not occured. Bitcoin might have continued pumping and those laser eyes bitcoiners would have acheived the goal of $100,000. It might also be that China’s ban is what broke the pattern and the bottom of the next bear market might bring bitcoin under 2017’s all time high for the first time.

[Lucius]

~snip~

It is easiest to blame China for all the bad things that are happening in the world, including the fact that the price of BTC has not reached $100k. But is it really China's fault that people are so naive as to react to one and the same news for years?

Following the same pattern, we can now say that the current situation is a reflection of what happened in Kazakhstan and blame Russia for everything. Inflation, endless printing of money, costs caused by the pandemic for 2 years are just coming to an end - and Bitcoin at this moment only confirms that it is still following a four-year cycle - a year and a half after halving things move south and winter comes from the north.

[bbc.reporter]

@Lucius. No one is blaming China hehehe. I only said it can be argued that if China did not begin the not fud ban on bitcoin mining and the ban on exchanges under their jurisdiction, the price of bitcoin might not have dumped below $45k and bitcoin might have continued to $100,000.

Also, are you telling us that the bull market has ended? Where do you predict the bottom price for bitcoin?

[Lucius]

@Lucius. No one is blaming China hehehe. I only said it can be argued that if China did not begin the not fud ban on bitcoin mining and the ban on exchanges under their jurisdiction, the price of bitcoin might not have dumped below $45k and bitcoin might have continued to $100,000.

Back in 2019, China announced that some industries that, according to their estimates, consume too much energy and are big polluters (including crypto mining) will be liquidated, why did people wonder when this really happened? And why do you even mention banning crypto exchanges in China, it is a thing at least 5 years old that had no impact on the price in 2021. $100k is such an insignificant number and complete nonsense that it has become an obsession for so many people who now blame everyone and everything for not getting rich last year.

Also, are you telling us that the bull market has ended? Where do you predict the bottom price for bitcoin?

It is possible that the bull market is over, 50% correction in the price of ATH suggests that this is the case - although we will be able to say it with certainty in a few months. But that's just my opinion and by no means financial advice - and as for the bottom price, I may have written something lately, so if you're interested you can always check out my post history.

[o_e_l_e_o]

according to the vice chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA).

Now let's ask why an agency which is tasked with regulating the markets is weighing in on the environmental aspects of bitcoin, which has absolutely nothing to do with their remit. They couldn't possibly be actively looking for any excuse to ban it or spread FUD, could they?

Erik Thedéen, the vice chair being referred to here, was a banker at Sweden's Central Bank, then a banker at JP Bank, then a hedge fund manager at Brummers & Partners, and then president of Nasdaq Nordic. There is absolutely no way that someone so entwined in the legacy banking system would have any reason at all to disparage bitcoin, I'm sure.

Maybe, rather than punishing people trying to save a little by putting some of their money in to a deflationary currency, we should take a look at inflationary currency and the fact that our entire economy is based on needless and endless consumption of things we don't need. Maybe that would have a bigger impact on climate change?

[mindrust]

So is this what cause the entire crypto market to crash? Bitcoin below 40k, and now even Ethereum belore $3000 (which I thought wasn't going to happen).

Just because of a call to ban PoW? And the reasoning is entirely stupid, because of climate change and don't get me wrong I think the climate needs to be a concern but if we're banning the most secure form of transacting money, why aren't we banning leisure and non-essential industry?

Don't think so. Nasdaq is also down. All the other tech stocks down. Maybe these announcements are fueling the fire but they are not enough to crash crypto that much. The Fed is crashing the markets imo. That's the main factor here.

Sooner or later bitcoin will have to face this issue though. The amount of electricity the miners are using will eventually gather attention and nothing good will come out of it.

[slaman29]

Just because of a call to ban PoW? And the reasoning is entirely stupid, because of climate change and don't get me wrong I think the climate needs to be a concern but if we're banning the most secure form of transacting money, why aren't we banning leisure and non-essential industry?

Don't think so. Nasdaq is also down. All the other tech stocks down. Maybe these announcements are fueling the fire but they are not enough to crash crypto that much. The Fed is crashing the markets imo. That's the main factor here.

Sooner or later bitcoin will have to face this issue though. The amount of electricity the miners are using will eventually gather attention and nothing good will come out of it.

Got it yes actually when I first saw this I wasn't aware of whatever else was going on. Netflix got broken badly too, and most stock markets all over the world crashed badly, proving again Bitcoin and crypto relies on traditional markets and economies anyway.

Problem is that unlike last bad crash, crypto doesn't seem to have recovered as well this time. But maybe it's still the early days of the shock on first time crypto buyers.

[stompix]

Yeah right, the EU banning mining is like banning mammoth hunting, they've already managed to drive almost everything related to mining away, and unless there is a one in a million chance of stumbling on perfect conditions mining is almost dead around here.
I benefit from a contract signed nearly a year ago, I have a fixed plan that was mainly to be used by my family business so that's why I'm still able to mine, but if I would have to switch even to the standard commercial rates I would probably sale my gear if the switch would be to residential rates then with this dump and the difficulty adjustment there is no way to break even.

The real impact from such a ban would be minimal, especially since we have to exclude Iceland, not connected to the European grid and with 99.99% green energy, leaving just small farms around Italy, Sweden, and Norway (which is not in the EU).
The media reaction, on the other hand, will be something we really don't need right now.

@SFR10. It might not be too late for the European Union if they want prevention of having those miners moving into their jurisdictions that might become a problem for them later.

Just as efficient as Lisa's "Tiger-Repelling Rock"

[Lucius]

Sooner or later bitcoin will have to face this issue though. The amount of electricity the miners are using will eventually gather attention and nothing good will come out of it.

I thought that people on this forum are at least a little more aware of the real situation when it comes to the amount of electricity currently used by crypto miners. Even if that amount increases x5, it would still be extremely foolish to even mention it in the context of any serious problem - a picture speaks a thousand words - the credit goes to our member @fillippone who long ago shattered that myth to pieces.

Show this information to any concerned scientist, ecologist, politician or banker, and if after that he continues to persist in the idea that Bitcoin is destroying the environment, there is no doubt that you can classify it as one of the world's greatest fools.

[bbc.reporter]

@Lucius. No one is blaming China hehehe. I only said it can be argued that if China did not begin the not fud ban on bitcoin mining and the ban on exchanges under their jurisdiction, the price of bitcoin might not have dumped below $45k and bitcoin might have continued to $100,000.

Back in 2019, China announced that some industries that, according to their estimates, consume too much energy and are big polluters (including crypto mining) will be liquidated, why did people wonder when this really happened? And why do you even mention banning crypto exchanges in China, it is a thing at least 5 years old that had no impact on the price in 2021. $100k is such an insignificant number and complete nonsense that it has become an obsession for so many people who now blame everyone and everything for not getting rich last year.

Also, are you telling us that the bull market has ended? Where do you predict the bottom price for bitcoin?

It is possible that the bull market is over, 50% correction in the price of ATH suggests that this is the case - although we will be able to say it with certainty in a few months. But that's just my opinion and by no means financial advice - and as for the bottom price, I may have written something lately, so if you're interested you can always check out my post history.

I was only arguing that if China’s crackdown during 2021 only occured as fud, the miners would not have dumped their coins, the large exchanges left operating in China would have not have disallowed Chinese citizens from their platforms and we would remain having those Chinese investors pump the market.

2021’s crackdown was not similar to the crackdowns before this. That was why we had what was called the China fud because there was no hard enforcement. China’s ban of 2021 however was not fud. It really drove the miners and the exchanges away.

I also read that you speculate $2X,000 might be a possbility. I agree! It is good to see everyone beginning to witness the reality of the situation. The market is overleveraged and there will always be a funding reset.

Sooner or later bitcoin will have to face this issue though. The amount of electricity the miners are using will eventually gather attention and nothing good will come out of it.

I thought that people on this forum are at least a little more aware of the real situation when it comes to the amount of electricity currently used by crypto miners. Even if that amount increases x5, it would still be extremely foolish to even mention it in the context of any serious problem - a picture speaks a thousand words - the credit goes to our member @fillippone who long ago shattered that myth to pieces.

Show this information to any concerned scientist, ecologist, politician or banker, and if after that he continues to persist in the idea that Bitcoin is destroying the environment, there is no doubt that you can classify it as one of the world's greatest fools.

I speculate why they do this is more for their polical agenda. However, the difficulties of the transition to renewable energy might also be another reason. China is also presently beginning to target crude oil and they might lower imporation similar to what they did to their coal importations.



Top Chinese state-owned conglomerates are having to reevaluate their oil-related operations as the country moves to implement President Xi Jinping's vision for achieving zero net carbon emissions by 2060.

Source https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Energy/Chinese-state-groups-write-off-assets-as-future-of-oil-dims

[Ozero]

So is this what cause the entire crypto market to crash? Bitcoin below 40k, and now even Ethereum belore $3000 (which I thought wasn't going to happen).

Just because of a call to ban PoW? And the reasoning is entirely stupid, because of climate change and don't get me wrong I think the climate needs to be a concern but if we're banning the most secure form of transacting money, why aren't we banning leisure and non-essential industry?

Yes, the possible introduction of a ban in Europe on the mining of energy-intensive cryptocurrencies with a proof-of-work algorithm is called one of the main reasons for the current market decline. In fact, the reason for this is the need to combat global climate change, which is very serious. Moreover, it is so serious that the states will not particularly find out whether a PoW cryptocurrency is really energy-consuming. They will be happy to find at least some reason to ban cryptocurrency mining. Therefore, I consider such a ban to be quite real.

[slaman29]

Just because of a call to ban PoW? And the reasoning is entirely stupid, because of climate change and don't get me wrong I think the climate needs to be a concern but if we're banning the most secure form of transacting money, why aren't we banning leisure and non-essential industry?

Yes, the possible introduction of a ban in Europe on the mining of energy-intensive cryptocurrencies with a proof-of-work algorithm is called one of the main reasons for the current market decline. In fact, the reason for this is the need to combat global climate change, which is very serious. Moreover, it is so serious that the states will not particularly find out whether a PoW cryptocurrency is really energy-consuming. They will be happy to find at least some reason to ban cryptocurrency mining. Therefore, I consider such a ban to be quite real.

Nah, I already got my answer, and no, it should be pretty clear this had nothing or at least very little to do with BTC's crash then. Check out every single asset considered by traditional investors to be risky, they've all gone down. Bitcoin actually even hasn't performed as bad as some other defi or memecoins which aren't even PoW.

PoW mining FUD is so weak.