Spanish lawmaker sees opportunity amid Kazakhstan’s Bitcoin mining collapse

Deputy for the Spanish Ciudadanos governmental enactment María Muñoz has projected a measure to marque Spain a Bitcoin mining hotspot pursuing the net shutdown that caused a mining outage successful Kazakhstan.

The lawyer and economist Muñoz was steadfast successful her enactment of Spain arsenic a Bitcoin (BTC) destination, successful a tweet connected Friday: 

“The protests successful Kazakhstan person repercussions each astir the satellite but besides for Bitcoin. We suggest that Spain positions itself arsenic a harmless destination for investments successful cryptocurrencies to make a flexible, businesslike and harmless sector.”

A two-page unfastened missive accompanied the tweet directed astatine the Spanish Congress of Deputies. First, Muñoz highlighted the value of the protests and the government’s effect which utilized “all the spot of the constabulary and the army,” earlier the authorities switched disconnected the net to the largest Central Asian economy.

She cited a Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance study that enactment Kazakhstan arsenic the second-largest Bitcoin miner worldwide, contributing an estimated 20% of the hash complaint successful the 2nd fractional of 2021. The government’s determination to efficaciously propulsion the rug retired from nether Kazakhstan’s Bitcoin miners caused the hash complaint to plummet a reported 13.4%.

These events inspired pertinent questions for the pro-Bitcoin lawmaker:

1. What accusation does the Spanish authorities person connected the interaction of the Kazakhstan net blackout connected the Spanish crypto mining industry?
2. Will the authorities instrumentality measures to pull investors and miners fleeing the Kazakhstan mining industry?
3. What information does the authorities person regarding the vigor ratio of Bitcoin and the maturation of the mining industry?

A proven proponent for the Bitcoin network, her enactment Ciudadanos, oregon “Citizens,” projected a nationalist strategy connected cryptocurrencies successful October past year. Her enactment seeks to presumption Spain arsenic a rod for investments into cryptocurrencies from the European Union and the satellite — and Bitcoin mining could beryllium the catalyst.

As Bitcoin hash complaint fluctuations person shown clip and again, mining infrastructure is not geographically restricted. China’s mining ban, for example, was to the payment of Kazakhstan and Kosovo.

Alan Konevsky, main ineligible serviceman astatine PrimeBlock, explained past year's mining changes to Cointelegraph: “Mining companies including those that relocated aft the China regulatory changes, acceptable up successful countries similar Kazakhstan and Kosovo due to the fact that the outgo of energy is overmuch cheaper than successful North America.”

This was shown successful Kazakhstan’s increasing hash complaint successful 2021. However, successful a premonition to what could instrumentality spot successful Spain, Konevsky goes connected to explain:

“If mining becomes a implicit non-starter successful these countries, we could spot miners relocate. This manufacture is mobile, to a constituent — but arsenic it matures it requires stability, including unchangeable governmental clime and unchangeable inputs, including energy.”

Muñoz hopes that Spain harbors these Bitcoin-friendly factors. However, 1 of BTC's biggest headwinds whitethorn beryllium political. Her tweet inspired ridicule from rival Green enactment subordinate Ernest Urtasun, a European Parliament member. 

Labeling her connection a “bad joke” successful a tweet, helium said BTC mining is “an biology aberration.” Muñoz and her Citizens enactment intelligibly person their enactment chopped out.