Crypto mining in a Serb-dominated community in northern Kosovo was targeted by authorities and police conducting searches on Friday.
According to Turkey’s Anadolu Agency, which quoted a member of the Albanian-led government in Pristina, Kosovar police have reportedly seized dozens of cryptocurrency mining devices from residents of a predominantly Serb-dominated district in the north of the country.
According to Economy Minister Artane Rizvanolli, 174 unregistered pieces of hardware used to generate virtual currencies were seized.
Nobody pays their electricity bill
Albanian-majority Kosovo has struggled to bill the Serbian population in northern Kosovo for electricity consumption over the past 23 years since it declared independence from Serbia.
While only 2% of the city’s 1.8 million residents live in the four northern municipalities, they consume 6% of the city’s electricity and their consumption is increasing, from 214 GWh in 2011 to 267 GWh in 2017 and 372 GWh a year 2021
A Kosovan police officer inspects crypto mining rigs during a raid in Leposavic.
Unpaid electricity and water bills in four Serbian municipalities in northern Kosovo reportedly exceed 300 million euros, or nearly $330 million.
Rizvanolli announced the operation on social media, saying that not paying utility bills encourages illegal crypto mining activities.
The Economy Minister said:
“Failure to pay utility bills encourages such illegal activities. Therefore, Serbia is obstructing the implementation of the energy agreement.”
She added that they have fulfilled all their commitments and that “it’s time for the other side to do the same”.
To reduce unpaid electricity consumption, the government of Kosovo has announced a temporary ban on crypto mining until the end of 2021 and has started a crackdown on smuggled equipment.
Tensions Over Seizing Crypto Mining Rigs
According to Adriatik Stavileci, spokeswoman for the Kosovar customs authority, between 01.01.
The action has the potential to increase tensions in the ethnically divided, partially recognized Balkan state, and authorities in Pristina and Belgrade have already exchanged barbs over it.
According to Belgrade, behind the action is an attempt to increase tensions in the secessionist region.
The Serbian government’s coordinating organization for Kosovo and Metohija said the raids were targeting Serbs on a day sacred to the Serbian Orthodox Church and the police operation was described as a continuation of harassment of the Serb people.
The cryptocurrency’s current market cap is $1.23 trillion, according to the daily chart on TradingView.com
Crypto mining is expected to grow globally
Kosovo, mostly inhabited by ethnic Albanians, declared independence from Serbia in 2008.
Serbia still regards its former province as part of its jurisdiction and thus has not recognized the country’s independence.
With a projected CAGR of 12.90% between 2023 and 2032, Precedence Research estimates that the global cryptocurrency mining market will grow from its current valuation of $1.92 billion in 2022 to $7 billion in 2032 becomes.
-Featured image by Cryptoglobal
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