The Yunnan Energy Bureau said Saturday it would crack down on illegal bitcoin mining operations in the province by the end of June but stopped short of an all-out mining ban.
Yunnan has started a campaign against the misuse of energy resources by bitcoin miners, according to China’s state media outlet Securities Times, citing an anonymous source from the bureau. “There is a possibility that it shuts down all bitcoin mining operations in Yunnan in the future.” the source said in the article.
To be clear: Yunnan did not say it would eliminate all crypto activities, unlike recent notices from Inner Mongolia and Qinghai province.
While the move will not result in a sweeping ban on all bitcoin mining activities, it would force some businesses out of Yunnan. It is not clear how many bitcoin mining sites would be considered illegal.
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The crackdown foreshadows a tougher stance from hydro-based bitcoin mining hubs in China. Local authorities in Sichuan, another major hydro-based mining hub in China, are still in talks to determine a policy to regulate mining operations there.
UPDATE (June 14, 2021, 16:55 UTC): Updated with additional information.