(Cointelegraph) The hash rate on the Bitcoin network fell 13.4% following political unrest in Kazakhstan that led to the shutdown of the country’s internet and posed a challenge to the mining activity.
The hash rate fell to about 177,330 petahash per second, from 205,000 PH/s following the unrest, with the country accounting for about 18% of hash activity on the Bitcoin network.
Kazakhstan already ranks as the second-largest country across the globe in the Bitcoin mining hash rate, with the shutdown a big blow to the activity.
It remains to be seen how long the internet shutdown will last, with further extension expected to cause severe impacts on crypto mining.
The political stalemate that has now gripped the crypto industry is now taking a new turn after a Russian-led alliance that includes Belarus, Armenia, and others said they will send troops to “calm” the situation as they seek to protect key infrastructure.
Kazakhstan is projected to generate about $1.5 billion from legal crypto mining and a similar amount in illicit activities in the next five years. The country also ranks as the globe’s leading uranium miner.
BTCUSD is down -1.38%.
