New York bans bitcoin mining for two years

New York Governor Kathy Hawkul has signed a law imposing a two-year moratorium on cryptocurrency mining based on the PoW (Proof-of-Work) algorithm in the state. Back in June, the New York Senate approved a bill that would impose a two-year ban on the opening of new companies that use non-environmentally friendly cryptocurrency mining. However, Hawkul has so far refrained from signing it due to fierce lobbying by the cryptocurrency industry.

«I will make sure that New York continues to be a center of financial innovation, and I will also take important steps to protect our environment, and that will be my priority,» Hawkul said.

An earlier version of the bill, which called for a three-year moratorium on a wide range of mining facilities, was rejected by the Assembly last June. Opponents of the current version of the document, including Republican Assemblyman Robert Smullen, consider the ban to be «anti-technology.»

At present, most American miners consider cryptocurrency mining, in particular bitcoin, unprofitable due to rising global electricity prices and the falling exchange rate of the US dollar. To keep their business afloat, large pools are forced to sell the cryptocurrency they mine.

However, there is good news: yesterday it became known that the largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance has launched a new service — cloud mining. According to Binance Pool, users who do not have access to mining equipment can profit from cryptocurrency mining. To do this, they need to subscribe to the Cloud Mining service and purchase the required amount of hashrate. After that, users will be able to receive the mined bitcoins to their cryptocurrency wallet.