Three reasons why increased regulation will have no real impact on the development of Bitcoin

The country’s first major crypto regulation came in 2013, when the government recognized Bitcoin as virtual property but banned its use as a medium of exchange. In 2017, the central bank outlawed initial coin offerings (ICOs), causing a temporary plunge in the value of Bitcoin. While policies restricting trading are reiterated year after year, mining bans in several provinces are the most recent concern.
The mining ban announced in Sichuan last week has led to a mass exodus of miners seeking refuge overseas. It is estimated that 90% of the country’s mining farms will be shut down due to the recent ban. This news is significant because my country’s mining farms power 80% of the world’s cryptocurrency transactions.
While mining regulation has brought FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) to the global crypto market, causing a sharp drop in Bitcoin prices, many experts remain optimistic about the long-term health of Bitcoin. Here are three reasons why a mining ban may not be as bad as it seems.

1. Bitcoin is not banned in our country As it currently stands, our citizens are not forced to surrender their assets to the state. The words “Bitcoin” and “ban” are used a lot in the crackdown, but it is important to note that the government has not completely banned the holding of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
The central bank is primarily concerned about the impact that the growing development of cryptocurrencies has on the country's economic and financial stability. By increasing enforcement against speculative crypto trading and mining, the State Council hopes that the country's economy will be better protected from the wild swings in the crypto market. However, the recent crackdown on financial institutions that facilitate crypto payments is largely a reiteration of regulations from 2013 and 2017.
While the government has taken a more aggressive stance towards Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in recent months, some of the regulations mentioned could be upended as usual. When trading bans were implemented during the 2017 ICO boom, cryptocurrency trading continued, with many participants turning to forex exchanges based in Hong Kong and Japan. As long as holding the asset itself is legal, it is possible that users will find ways to circumvent trading restrictions. Of course, this could change if the government chooses to more strictly enforce existing laws.

2. Improved mining decentralization While the exodus of miners may disrupt the cryptocurrency market in the short term, decentralization is expected to make the Bitcoin network less susceptible to the rules and regulations of any one country in the long run. It is estimated that 65% of Bitcoin mining takes place in my country. As miners are now forced to migrate to other countries, the redistribution should help alleviate previous concerns about China's mining dominance.
It’s worth noting that the conflict between Bitcoin mining and national politics is far from new. In May, Iran announced a temporary mining ban due to a nationwide power shortage, leading to changes in the cryptocurrency market.
While Iran’s mining volume pales in comparison to China’s, the point remains – the risks and complications of mining would be less prevalent if miners were more dispersed. With the recent exodus, this is something that could very well happen.

3. A Greener Crypto Mining Industry With a significant portion of miners expected to relocate to the United States, the outflow could actually be a positive step toward reducing Bitcoin’s carbon footprint.
One landing spot for Chinese miners could be Texas. The state benefits from some of the world’s lowest energy prices, a growing share of renewable energy, a deregulated electric grid and, most importantly, one of the most pro-cryptocurrency politicians in the U.S., Greg Abbot, as governor.

As it stands, North American miners use a wider range of energy sources than miners in the Asia-Pacific region, and tend to rely less on burning fossil fuels such as coal. North American miners reported 28% coal-fired energy use, while Asia-Pacific miners used 65%. North American hashers are also more likely to connect their operations to a shared power grid.
North America also has more incentives to provide miners with renewable energy, either in the free market or through government regulation, as the mining industry's excessive use of energy continues to be subject to public scrutiny in the United States. In May, Elon Musk announced that Tesla would no longer accept Bitcoin as a payment method until the mining industry reaches 50% clean energy use. In June, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) publicly criticized Bitcoin's negative impact on the environment and called for increased regulation of the mining industry. Musk also co-led the North American Bitcoin Mining Committee with MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor, an organization dedicated to increasing transparency and renewable energy use in Bitcoin mining in the United States and combating Bitcoin's impact on environmental protection.

Biden added several new cryptocurrency reporting requirements to his 2022 budget, suggesting the country is moving toward a future in which cryptocurrencies may be strictly regulated but not outright banned.

In the future, the mining industry may be inclined to use clean energy alternatives, which is a more sustainable and progressive strategy than a complete ban. Ultimately, despite the hope, innovation, and ingenuity that crypto technology has brought to the digital age, there will always be obstacles to overcome, such as government regulation. But these are widely regarded as short-term obstacles in the long-term development - these obstacles will promote the development of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin as much as possible.