Bitcoin Miners are location Agnostic-Jack Dorsey Square CEO

There are plethora of assumptions Square has relied upon in support of Bitcoin impact on the environment, which have been criticized by many.

For instance, Bitcoin miners has been described by Square as ‘location agnostic’ and which only an internet connection can aid it to function and which many experts have opined that the aforementioned should be questioned, on the premise that the apposite geographical data on mining operations of Bitcoin.

In this 2019 study published in science journal Joule, an analysis of IP addresses showed that over two-thirds of the Bitcoin network’s computing power (68%) is based in Asia. Only 17% and 15% of the network’s computing power was found in Europe and North America respectively.

Today, Cambridge University’s Bitcoin Mining Map finds that China commands 65% of the world’s Bitcoin mining industry. These figures point to a clear preference among miners for setting up operations in Asia.

The Square white paper also alleges that the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) by energy source shows that hydro, wind, and solar are all cheaper than fossil fuel energy sources like coal. That may be true, but it still doesn’t mean that Bitcoin miners have flocked—or will flock—to renewable energy to power their operations.

 

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