Kazakhistan government has identified 106 farms used to conduct crypto mining activities that it has identified as illegal. As a result of the operations, it was revealed that these farms were connected with some former managers and wealthy businessmen. In the statement made by the government, it was stated that a total of 67,000 pieces of equipment worth approximately 193 million dollars were also seized.
Underlining the rise in cryptocurrency adoption and the illicit activity surrounding it (as defined by the government), the government has voluntarily agreed to stop such activities. crypto mining announced that his farm was closed and 51 mining farms were forcibly closed.
In a statement made by the government, these mining companies were found to be linked to well-known entrepreneurs and political figures. The list includes Bolat Nazarbayev, Alexander Klebanov from the Pavlodar region and Tlegen Matkenov from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The statement also mentions Kairat Itemgenov, Kazakhstan’s richest businessperson, according to Forbes (ranked 17th in 2021).
As a result of the investigation by the authorities, it was determined that the mining equipment was imported from China, South Korea, Singapore, Turkey and Georgia. It turned out that some of the imported equipment was smuggled even from the countries listed above.
The Financial Monitoring Agency opened 25 criminal cases and confiscated more than 67,000 pieces of equipment worth about 100 billion tenge (about $193 million). However, it was also revealed that more than a thousand mining equipment worth 2.8 billion tenge (Approximately 5.4 million dollars) were imported from China alone.
It is known that there has been an energy shortage in the country since last year. According to the statement, daily electricity consumption in the country decreased by 600 megawatts / hour. According to reports, Kazakhstan bitcoin It accounts for 18% of the hash rate of the network. Meanwhile, the country is calling for adequate regulation of the mining and circulation of digital assets, as it can serve as a tool for financing terrorism and other illegal activities.