Crypto Scandals & History on Nostr: In May-June 2021, a cascade of provincial bans in China led to a significant shift in ...
In May-June 2021, a cascade of provincial bans in China led to a significant shift in the global Bitcoin mining landscape. The bans, which started with Inner Mongolia in April, followed by Xinjiang, Qinghai, Yunnan, and Sichuan, culminated in a national ban announcement on May 21. This resulted in a drastic decline in Bitcoin's hashrate, from 180 EH/s to 60 EH/s in just eight weeks, representing a 65% drop. The network's difficulty adjustment mechanism, designed to maintain a consistent block time, played a crucial role in this process. As miners were forced to shut down their operations, the network adjusted its difficulty to compensate for the reduced hashrate, ensuring the continued security and functionality of the Bitcoin network. In the aftermath of the ban, miners relocated to other countries, with Kazakhstan taking 18% and the US taking 35% of the global hashrate by the end of 2021. Ironically, this ban led to an increase in decentralization, as the hashrate became more dispersed across the globe. The ban also highlighted the resilience of the Bitcoin network, which continued to operate smoothly despite the significant disruption. The decentralization of hashrate distribution has made the network more robust, but it also raises questions about the long-term sustainability of Bitcoin mining. Can the network maintain its security and decentralization in the face of increasing regulatory scrutiny and environmental concerns?
Published at
2026-03-23 21:00:05 UTCEvent JSON
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"content": "In May-June 2021, a cascade of provincial bans in China led to a significant shift in the global Bitcoin mining landscape. The bans, which started with Inner Mongolia in April, followed by Xinjiang, Qinghai, Yunnan, and Sichuan, culminated in a national ban announcement on May 21. This resulted in a drastic decline in Bitcoin's hashrate, from 180 EH/s to 60 EH/s in just eight weeks, representing a 65% drop. The network's difficulty adjustment mechanism, designed to maintain a consistent block time, played a crucial role in this process. As miners were forced to shut down their operations, the network adjusted its difficulty to compensate for the reduced hashrate, ensuring the continued security and functionality of the Bitcoin network. In the aftermath of the ban, miners relocated to other countries, with Kazakhstan taking 18% and the US taking 35% of the global hashrate by the end of 2021. Ironically, this ban led to an increase in decentralization, as the hashrate became more dispersed across the globe. The ban also highlighted the resilience of the Bitcoin network, which continued to operate smoothly despite the significant disruption. The decentralization of hashrate distribution has made the network more robust, but it also raises questions about the long-term sustainability of Bitcoin mining. Can the network maintain its security and decentralization in the face of increasing regulatory scrutiny and environmental concerns?",
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