“We are the second largest crypto miner in the world and we see virtually no financial return,” Kazakh President Tokayev said

[ad_1]

In a meeting with representatives of the financial sector on Friday in Almaty, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kazakhstan, expressed his opinion on the current situation of the country’s cryptocurrency industry. Details of the speech were published on the official website of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan and translated by Cointelegraph:

Cryptocurrencies are an objective factor that cannot be simply ignored. It is necessary to clearly assess their potential to influence the current financial system.

President Tokayev speaking at a conference | Source: Akorda.kz

He then added:

Therefore, work should be resumed on forming a balanced regulatory environment for the creation of cryptocurrency exchanges in the country. Otherwise, it turns out that we are the second country in the world for cryptocurrency [Bitcoin] mining, and we’re seeing virtually no financial returns.

According to data from the University of Cambridge, Kazakhstan’s share in the Bitcoin (BTC) network’s total hash rate is 18.10%, second in the world behind the United States (35.40%) and ahead of Russia (11.23%). However, there are a large number of individuals mining Bitcoin with disputed legal status in the country. According to some estimates, gray area miners account for up to 50% of all cryptocurrency mining activity in Kazakhstan.

In the context of President Tokayev’s statements, the lack of regulation of cryptocurrencies results, for better or for worse, in very little tax revenue captured by the government despite the strong growth of the industry in recent years. Nonetheless, President Tokayev discussed the possibility of introducing a digital tenge as a “representative of the financial system” and further reiterated his support for the development of FinTech in Kazakhstan:

Our financial institutions must seize the opportunity and tackle ambitious goals. It is necessary not only to copy someone else’s experience, but also to develop and promote new service formats that go beyond the borders of Kazakhstan. The state will do everything possible to promote these initiatives.

[ad_2]