Sweden’s crypto-friendly attitude and regulations could soon make it a world capital in the cryptocurrency and mining industry.
A researcher from the Stockholm School of Economics, Clair Ingram Bogusz, recently stated that considering the Swedish Bitcoin market growth, as well as the lenient regulations for fintech oriented startups, Sweden could soon become a world leader in the cryptocurrency industry.
According to Bogusz, Sweden has already established itself as a crypto-friendly country. Swedish citizens generally demonstrate an above-average knowledge of cryptocurrency, and the country demonstrates a significant level of competence when it comes to financial technology innovation. While Bogusz admits that Sweden cannot compete with larger cryptocurrency hubs such as Japan, due to their size, their knowledge of the industry, is unparalleled in other crypto-friendly countries.
Sweden has already established itself as a prominent leader of fintech in the EU. The country’s pragmatic regulatory policies have encouraged several fintech startups and other innovations. Bogusz also seems to mention that Sweden might soon become more focused towards Bitcoin, especially considering the cryptocurrency’s exponential growth in the last year.
Moreover, Sweden has proved to be an attractive option for Bitcoin miners worldwide. Considering the country’s cool climate and cost-effective and abundant electricity, several Bitcoin miners have been swayed to move their large mining operations to Sweden.
The country’s conduciveness to Bitcoin mining could perhaps only be rivaled by a region located in China’s North East region. The mountainous area is home to some of the world’s biggest Bitcoin mining operations, due to its naturally cold climate as well as the reliable and cheap supply of electricity.
However, several Chinese miners have recently been readying themselves to move their operations abroad, due to the Chinese government’s seeming ambiguity towards the industry. In an interview with the news outlet, the South China Morning Post, an anonymous Bitcoin mining operation executive and founder, confirmed that most Chinese Bitcoin miners are currently readying themselves to set up their mining operations abroad.
The miner, referred to as Cui, confirmed that several Bitcoin Miners have already established contact with countries such as Thailand, the US, Vietnam, Russia, and Laos in order to negotiate electricity prices and the purchasing of land to set up operations. Currently, the predominant feeling amongst Bitcoin miners is to move overseas, even if there’s only a 1% possibility of the Chinese government targeting the Bitcoin mining industry.
Cui was the only miner who agreed to an interview, three other miners declined the interview, due to concerns of becoming targeted by the Chinese government. Cui also confirmed that it is common practice for miners to bribe local electricity operators and providers. Seeing as electricity operators have complete control over the power supply, miners generally bribe and ingratiate themselves towards operators to ensure a reliable supply of electricity.
In addition, Cui noted that liquidity is becoming a growing concern for China-based miners. Ever since the Chinese government’s blanket ban on cryptocurrency in October, miners have been increasingly hard-pressed to sell their mined Bitcoin.
However, Sweden could prove to be the solution to China-based miners’ problem. Sweden has an ample and reliable supply of electricity that is as cost-effective as China’s. In addition, Sweden provides an even colder climate than China, which is especially helpful to help prevent complex hardware systems from overheating. Lastly, Sweden’s friendly attitude towards cryptocurrency in addition to their encouraging regulatory policies will make the day-to-day life of miners and their operations significantly more convenient.
