China’s crackdown on crypto mining is not only sending the Bitcoin price downhill. Graphics cards are also seeing significant price reductions in the Middle Kingdom.
One man’s meat is another man’s suffering? While the government in China is consistently expanding its crypto mining ban, the price of high-end graphics cards has fallen by two thirds. Nvidia’s chips are not only suitable for video games, but also for mining cryptocurrencies.
The South China Morning Post reported on June 21 from the price development. She linked them to the actions of the provincial government in Sichuan, which declared mining in the region to be banned since Saturday (June 19). Unlike in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia, the Bitcoin miners in Sichuan made use of hydropower, but local energy suppliers will be prohibited from doing business with the mining farms in the future.
As a result, for example, the price of the Asus sold Nvidia RTX 3060 dropped to 4,699 yuan ($ 730) on June 21. It was previously at 13,499 yuan ($ 2,100). It remains to be seen whether the developments in China will affect the western market for graphics cards. Manufacturer Nvidia had to intervene here to keep the coveted graphics chips out of the hands of miners – with moderate success.
China strengthens Bitcoin ban
The fact that China has declared war on Bitcoin mining can at least officially be traced back to Beijing’s new climate policy. Because the country wants to drastically reduce its CO2 emissions. But apart from that, the Chinese government is expanding its action against the crypto space.
The country’s central bank announced at a meeting on June 21 that financial institutions in China will in future be obliged to prevent their customers from doing Bitcoin transactions. Representatives from major financial institutions were present at the meeting.