Chinese crypto mining companies are increasingly turning towards Africa, and Ethiopia in particular, for their mining operations, according to a new report in Bloomberg.
Ethiopia, like China, officially bans cryptocurrency trading, but the country legalized Bitcoin mining in 2022. Now, Chinese companies which have spent the years since China’s 2021 cryptocurrency ban searching for a new investment hub are increasingly investing in operations inside the African nation.
According to Bloomberg, 19 of the 21 companies which have struck deals with Ethiopia’s power monopoly are Chinese. Miners are attracted by Ethiopia’s cheap electricity, of which 92% is provided by hydropower, even though nearly half of all Ethiopians live without access to electricity. Ethiopia’s temperate climate is also favorable to mining operations, while Texas, the United States’ biggest hub for mining, often faces higher…
