President Biden is asking Congress to take aim at the American Bitcoin mining industry — and he's citing China as an example for the United States to follow.
The fact that the United States has taken an aggressive approach to cryptocurrency regulations — despite giving the green light for Bitcoin ETFs — is basically undeniable. This is particularly true of the Bitcoin mining complex, which has a long history dating back to the earliest days of Bitcoin. Nevertheless, the feds seem hellbent on destroying the industry, even though it operates on a cleaner energy grid than you will find in most countries.
Rather than a business friendly approach or at the very least acknowledging the value brought by a domestic Bitcoin mining industry, the Biden administration in March reintroduced a controversial proposal to impose a 30% excise tax on the cost of electricity used for Bitcoin mining. The draconian proposal is called the Digital Asset Mining Energy tax (DAME), and it could lead American Bitcoin miners — from RIOT Platforms to Marathon Digital Holdings — to flee American soil.
Senator Cynthia Lummis, a Wyoming Republican, noting as much on X, writing, “A proposed 30% punitive tax on digital asset mining would destroy any foothold the industry has in America.”
