ESMA’s Vice Chair Urges EU to Ban Bitcoin Mining

ESMA's vice chairman Erik Thedéen has released an official statement calling out for measures to be taken on crypto mining energy usage. Bitcoin mining, especially, has become a national issue for Sweden, Erik's native nation. The Swede has asserted that crypto mining effectively intensifies climate change.

Thedéen called out the 27 member states of the European Union to ban crypto mining operations that were energy-intensive. More specifically, the vice chairman urged regulators to ban the Proof of Work (PoW) mining method which consumes a lot of energy, and to replace it with the Proof of Stake (PoS)  which utilizes much less energy.

Last Novemeber, Thedéen was concerned that local Swedish crypto mining would cause the nation to not meet its climate obligations. In Sweden alone, electricity used for crypto mining could easily be used to run 200 000 households.

Despite his suggestions, Thedéen is far from being opposed to a ban on cryptocurrencies. His efforts have been concerned with a more sustainable crypto technology that should replace the current status quo of digital assets tech. Thedéen asserted that all institution in the crypto markets industry, especially the large institutions have”environmental, social and governance (ESG) responsibilities.”

China's decision to ban crypto mining has sent an enormous amount of traffic to all corners of the world, stimulating a new rise of unsustainable energy usage, added Thedéen.