Iran bans cryptocurrency mining for 4 months amid power cuts

Iran has banned the energy-intensive mining of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin for nearly four months. The country is facing major power blackouts in many cities, and the government has blamed the outages on cryptocurrency mining, which is a highly energy intensive process.

 

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the ban on the mining of cryptocurrencies is effective immediately until September 22. As next month's presidential election approaches, the blackouts have been widely criticised by Iranians.

 

According to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, around 4.5% of all Bitcoin mining takes place in



Iran, allowing it to earn hundreds of millions of dollars from cryptocurrencies. Iran has accepted crypto mining in recent years, offering cheap power and requiring miners to sell their bitcoins to the central bank. 

Tehran allows cryptocurrencies mined in Iran to be used to pay for imports of authorised goods. The prospect of cheap power has attracted miners, particularly from China, to Iran.

Generating the electricity they use requires the equivalent of around 10 million barrels of crude oil a year, or 4% of total Iranian oil exports in 2020.