Bitcoin Mining Booming In Troubled Venezuela

Venezuela is suffering its worst collapse in history. Inflation is soaring and basic necessities are in very short supply so a great many have turned to bitcoin mining to survive, according to reports in the latest issue of the Atlantic.

The reason for this is that electricity is now far cheaper and affordable in the economically blighted country than basic essentials. Under President Nicolás Maduro, electricity is heavily subsidised to the extreme that it’s more or less free, the Atlantic tells us.

Bitcoin mining is a very technically complex method of passive financing and this is how it works. Bitcoin Miners use computer hardware to perform complex equations that create each new link in the bitcoin blockchain which is its massive, decentralised ledger. In return, they receive bitcoins. One key requirement of bitcoin mining is to have a good supply of power as the computer resource needed is heavy and uses a great deal of electricity.

The Atlantic tells us that a Venezuelan user who can run several bitcoin mining devices can make about $700 per month on healthy run. This is a very healthy income and more than enough to feed a small family and purchase everyday goods.

However authorities have begun stamping out mining operations, the Atlantic reports. They explain that because the country does not have any cryptocurrency laws, police are detaining miners on “spurious” charges. This move has driven mining underground and some are moving into ethereum for higher profits.