“Unlike most governments, Bhutan’s BTC does not come from law enforcement asset seizures, but from bitcoin mining operations, which have ramped up dramatically since early 2023,” the crypto intelligence firm explained. Crypto intelligence firm Arkham highlighted the Kingdom of Bhutan’s bitcoin holdings on social media platform X last week. Bhutan is a small, landlocked kingdom located in the eastern Himalayas, bordered by China to the north and India to the south. The country currently has a population of less than 800,000 people.
We learned last year that Bhutan had been secretly mining bitcoin using its abundant hydroelectric resources since around 2019. The operation, which began when bitcoin was priced at approximately $5,000, aims to harness the country’s vast renewable energy reserves to power mining rigs.
Hydroelectricity already accounts for 30% of Bhutan’s GDP and powers nearly all of its 800,000 residents. The government claimed last year that mining profits are used to subsidize power and hardware costs. This revelation makes Bhutan one of the few countries globally to run a state-owned bitcoin mine, alongside El Salvador.
At over $800 million in Bitcoin holdings, the reserve accounts for nearly a third of Bhutan’s 2022-calculated GDP.
Abstract credit: https://slashdot.org/story/433433
Wow, that’s wild! Amazing how Bhutan has managed to leverage its hydroelectric resources like that. It’s cool seeing a small country finding innovative ways to benefit from renewable energy. Guess the future really is in clean energy, huh? Wonder what other surprises Bhutan has in store for us.