Once upon a time, whenever Bitcoin mining was mentioned, the world's gaze would inevitably turn to China. However, as China comprehensively banned the mining industry in 2021, the end of one era also marked the beginning of a new one. Today, the global landscape of Bitcoin mining is undergoing a profound, complex, and geopolitically charged transformation.
This is no longer a single-nation dominated solo act, but a global "mining war" participated by energy powers, sovereign states, and even giants in the world of cryptocurrencies. In this brand new competition, the United States and Russia are playing a new "Cold War", while Bhutan, a Himalayan kingdom, has emerged as a surprise player with an amazing "national mining" model, and the stablecoin giant Tether has staked its claim to the throne of the world's largest mining company with a multi-billion investment.
Great power game
Recently, the剧烈 turmoil in the global computing power map of Bitcoin has exposed the naked struggle between major powers to the world.
On the same day the US launched a military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, the global hashrate of Bitcoin suffered the most drastic cliff dive in three years, a decline of over 15%. This astonishing coincidence has fanned the flames of猜测 in the加密 community about "whether the US is secretly轰炸ing Iran's Bitcoin mines". Bitcoin OG Max Keiser even went so far as to say, "We may have entered an era where nations bomb each other's Bitcoin mining facilities, which is exactly what I predicted in 2017 as a global hashrate war."
Bitcoin mining in Iran, which was an "innovative move" by the country seeking to break through美国严厉的 sanctions, has now led to a global hash rate war after the country was forced to halt mining due to the war. The country, which uses its abundant and cheap energy, saw mining as a way to bypass traditional banking systems and earn much-needed foreign exchange. Estimations suggest that Iran once accounted for about 4% of the world's Bitcoin hash power.
On the other side of the ocean, the United States sits firmly in the driver’s seat of global Bitcoin mining, thanks to its mature capital markets and relatively clear regulatory expectations. However, this new hegemon is not without its worries. It is facing a profound supply chain challenge: a reliance on Chinese-made mining equipment.
Chinese mining rig manufacturers, represented by Bitmain and MicroBT, have long dominated the global market. The tariff policies imposed by the US on Chinese goods have directly increased the hardware costs for American miners, weakening their competitiveness. To address this situation, manufacturers like Bitmain are accelerating their plans to build factories in the US, attempting to bypass tariff barriers through localization of production. This signifies that future global mining competition will not only hinge on energy costs but also on the restructuring of the hardware supply chain.
While the US and Iran are locked in a direct or indirect computational power contest, Russia is being seen as a potential winner in this computational power war. Analysts predict that with its abundant energy resources and relatively stable policy environment, Russia is likely to surpass the US in the near future and become the world's first or second largest Bitcoin mining power.
Small State Grand Strategy
While the major powers are locked in a fierce battle for computing power, some small countries are taking a different approach, using Bitcoin mining as a unique tool for national development.
Bhutan, a kingdom hidden in the Himalayas, is witnessing an astonishing "mining of happiness". Utilizing its abundant and surplus zero-carbon hydropower resources, this country of just 800,000 people has quietly挖掘 and hoarded around $1.3 billion worth of Bitcoin over the past five years, a figure equivalent to 40% of its GDP, elevating it to the third largest holder of Bitcoin in the world. Bitcoin mining is, in fact, becoming Bhutan's "new national treasure chest", a unprecedented development model that deeply binds the country's fate with the Bitcoin network.
This national-level plan, ordered personally by the King of Bhutan, began in 2020. Its national think tank, DHI, realized that using surplus cheap hydropower for mining was an excellent way to transform natural resources into national wealth. This massive digital asset is tangibly benefiting the real economy: The Bhutanese government is using mining surplus to give a 50% pay rise to all civil servants and is rolling out a cryptocurrency payment system in the capital, Thimphu, in an attempt to create a complete economic cycle from "miner to wallet, to city." Bhutan's success provides a bold and智慧的 example for the world's small economies.
Inspired by the success of countries like Bhutan, Pakistan, which is facing severe fiscal压力, also plans to repurpose its idle 2 gigawatts (2GW) of power generation capacity towards Bitcoin mining and AI data centers. The government hopes to save $745 million in avoided capacity payments at power plants and create近1.8 billion in foreign exchange earnings annually. However, the challenges faced by Pakistan are far greater than that of Bhutan: its high industrial electricity prices, reliance on power subsidies, and pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) all add uncertainties to this catch-up journey.
The ambitions of corporate giants
In this nationalistic race, a native giant of the encrypted world is making a powerful entrance as a disruptor. Tether, the world's largest stablecoin issuer, is no longer satisfied with its dominance in the stablecoin market. Its CEO, Paolo Ardoino, recently made public statements that Tether aims to become "the world's number one Bitcoin miner" by the end of 2025.
This is not just lip service. Since 2023, Tether has committed over $2 billion to building mines focused on green energy in 15 global locations, such as Uruguay, Paraguay, and El Salvador. Arдоine admitted that Tether's motivation is not only financial investment but also strategic: as a whale holding over 100,000 bitcoins, participating in mining and becoming a member of the "Bitcoin Network Security Team" is the best way to protect the safety of its large reserve assets.
Tether's entry marks a new dimension in the war for computing power: a privately held company with the means to rival nation-states is joining the competition for the underlying infrastructure of Bitcoin.
The Power Game of the New Era
From the geopolitical struggles between major powers, to the economic development strategies of smaller nations, and even the strategic layouts of corporate giants, the global landscape of Bitcoin mining is undergoing a profound and severe transformation. Computing power, once a mere technical indicator, is now inextricably linked to national energy security, financial sovereignty, economic competitiveness, and even military strategy.
To sum up, the old era of Bitcoin mining has come to an end, and a new world order is taking shape. The global race for Bitcoin hash power has blown the trumpet, and its ultimate outcome will undoubtedly profoundly impact the global power map of the 21st century.
