Demand For Mining Equipment Decreased In Russia After The Proposal Of The Central Bank To Ban Cryptocurrencies

At the same time, Ozon and Wildberries noted that video game lovers support the demand for video cards.

At the beginning of 2022, the number of offers for mining equipment sales increased while the demand for it in the country decreased. RBC was told about this by representatives of one of the most extensive online ad services and equipment distributors.

A representative of an unnamed marketplace also confirmed that the decline in demand for equipment is associated with the January report of the Central Bank with a proposal to ban the issuance, circulation and exchange of cryptocurrencies in Russia. One of the publication’s interlocutors noted that the demand for video cards had significantly decreased in the first month of the year.

According to him, the number of announcements for the sale of mining farms has increased. At the same time, the number of ads for the sale of ASICs (a microcircuit used for specific highly specialized tasks) increased by 17%, but they were searched less often.

Analysts of the VKontakte Announcements and Yula services said that they recorded an increase in the number of announcements for the sale of goods for mining by 3% in January compared to December. At the same time, the demand for such goods in January grew 1.5 times compared to December.

An Ozon representative said that in January, their sales of mining products increased by 51% compared to the previous month. Wildberries noted that from January 20 to January 26, Russians ordered 5.5 times more video cards than in the same period in 2021. At the same time, the service representative noted that he does not expect a significant change in demand for video cards, processors and memory modules. In addition to mining, gamers actively use this equipment, specialists in editing and processing photos and videos.

• On January 20, 2022, the Central Bank released a report that proposed new restrictions on cryptocurrencies in Russia without their prohibition. On January 27, the Ministry of Finance proposed regulating cryptocurrency.
• The Central Bank criticized the position of the Ministry of Finance, adding that its approach threatens the emergence of a “parallel financial system.” On January 28, RBC reported that the Ministry of Finance, the FSB, the Ministry of Digital Development and other departments agreed to regulate cryptocurrencies by the end of 2022.

Also Read: New Gold Or Bubble: Will Cryptocurrencies Replace Regular Money