China is the 1st bitcoin miner but the US makes a lot more money with it

Chainalysis’s ranking reveals which countries have benefited the most from the bitcoin boom in 2020. With some surprising results.

Who made the most money in 2020 from bitcoin? The cryptocurrency analysis firm Chainalysis has looked into the issue. He delivered his answers on June 7 in a comprehensive report detailing which countries benefited the most from the bitcoin boom last year.

« The decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies makes geographic analysis complex. It is not possible to know with absolute certainty where the actors taking part in a transaction are located. We can, however, establish fairly reliable estimates. », Specifies the firm which details in its publication its method of evaluation.

China is far behind the United States

The big winners this crazy year for bitcoin have been the United States, Chainalysis reveals, with earnings estimated at $ 4.1 billion. This is significantly higher than what the other countries have earned: Japan and the United Kingdom, respectively 3rd and 4th in the ranking, are thus both located under the billion dollars. Only China (2nd in the ranking) manages to exceed this threshold but by little, with profits estimated at 1.1 billion dollars in 2020.

This may come as a surprise, because China is the country that concentrates most of the bitcoin creation activity: 75% of global mining takes place on its soil. It must be said that it is possible to equip oneself on site at attractive prices. The cost of energy is also quite competitive, especially in certain seasons. Many miners travel to Sichuan during the wet season to take advantage of the cheap (and ecological) electricity produced by dams in the region.

The Chainalysis report suggests, however, that American investors have chosen their timing better to sell their bitcoin than others. ” In almost every country, investors made their biggest gains towards the end of the year. This is when American investors really stood out from the crowd. »

France tied with Germany and Russia

The value of Bitcoin increased significantly at this time of year: from mid-October to the end of December 2020, the value of Bitcoin increased from $ 11,471 to $ 29,111. ” Some long-time investors sold their cryptocurrencies to new investors, when prices started to climb (…) The sharp rise in earnings recorded by US investors at this time suggests that they were successful in selling at higher prices. “

The French and French crypto enthusiasts are positioned rather high in the rankings: with 0.6 billion dollars in earnings in 2020, they have garnered a profit equivalent to the Germans and the Russians. Chainalysis also notes with interest that many countries “ play above their usual category », In the bitcoin sphere.

The firm thus gives the example of the Czech Republic, Turkey or Spain and dwells more extensively on that of Vietnam. Despite a ” extraordinary economic growth over the past 20 years “, The latter is ranked 53rd in the ranking of global GDP, but it is 13th in the ranking of the countries which have reaped the most profits thanks to bitcoin in 2020. It is better than what we do in countries such as the ‘Australia or Belgium, however much better positioned in the usual economic rankings, underlines Chainalysis.

China attacks bitcoin miners

It will be interesting to see how this ranking evolves next year. Right now, China is tightening the screw on bitcoin miners a lot. Beijing is indeed worried about the speculative risk associated with it, and even more so about the consequent environmental impact of this activity. On May 19, the country banned Chinese banks and payment companies from offering cryptocurrency-related services. She also announced that she would restrict bitcoin mining and trading before shutting down the Weibo (Chinese Twitter) accounts of many influential crypto commentators.

Several companies such as HashCow or BIT.TOP have shown that they have received the message, and indicated that they will no longer offer bitcoin mining equipment or services in China. These restrictions could result in the shutdown of a significant percentage of the machines dedicated to cryptocurrency mining in China (up to half, according to the CEO of BIT.TOP). It is likely that in the years to come, part of this activity will move to North America. This does not guarantee – as we can see – to generate the most important profits. But this redistribution of mining will certainly have an impact on the next ranking.