China’s crypto crackdown shouldn’t have come as a surprise. The country has been showing a disgruntled mood over the crypto industry for a long time now. It is believed that the authorities decided to take the fateful action after a spike in electricity consumption from Bitcoin server farms. But the truth is far from this. 

China has made a serious pledge to reduce its carbon footprint in the coming years. And its burgeoning coal mafia has not only made it difficult to fulfil that pledge but also threatened its hold over its own economy. 

China, Coal and Bitcoin - the basics 

Seeing how Bitcoin is the product of fossil fuels, the industry has opened gateways for the coal mafia to thrive. The rising coal demand for mining has prompted Bitcoin farmers to restart idled mines without official approval, leading to higher safety risks and exorbitant levels of coal emission. China - the world's biggest coal miner and consumer - produced 3.84 billion tonnes of coal in 2020, as pr data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

And its not enough that these farmers have formed a ghetto to acquire coal, the local authorities have also joined hands in the illegal occupation, thus adding to their power and influence. 

Authorities in some remote areas have already been running illegal set-ups. One such area is in the famed Xinjiang region - which alone accounts for 36% of the global mining industry. 

On April 17-18, when the area was hit by a flood, the resulting blackout halted about one-third of all of Bitcoin's global computing power. This incident not only underscored China’s dominance in the mining business but also proved the government’s fears true. So much mining dominance concentrated in such a small area raises huge security concerns. 

Looming fears of a powerful mafia and obedience by local governments thus prompted the country to take to banning.

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