Is Bitcoin mining legal everywhere?

[penninah]

Hi there,

Is mining bitcoins legal in all countries or there are some that have restrictions on the same?

[Jessica Kerry]

Hi Penninah,
Mining bitcoin is perfectly legal, in most cases, anyway. However, in some countries, mining, possession, and transactions involving bitcoins are illegal.
Legal Bitcoin Mining
In some most countries possession and mining of bitcoin is legal. Often, bitcoin is treated as an asset and not as a currency. Therefore, just like any other property, bitcoin attracts legal protection.
Illegal Bitcoin Mining
Some jurisdictions believe bitcoin mining resembles counterfeiting money. Mining cryptocurrencies is also viewed as undermining governments by offering a non-state-controlled currency.
Furthermore, malicious viruses and illegal power connections have been used to access venerable computers to apply their processors in bitcoin mining. This is illegal in any jurisdiction worldwide.
In Russia, bitcoin mining and possession is banned. Anti-bitcoin sentiments lie in economic crisis Russia is going through, amid suctions over Ukraine and low crude oil prices.
Ecuador explicitly makes it illegal to produce digital currencies, although she has launched her own crypto. Ecuador’s ban rests on preventing a competing crypto against her own.
Iceland prohibits mining and trading in bitcoins. Her economy suffered painfully after the Great Recession. As such, authorities ring-fenced the kroner against external pressure, including a ban on cryptos.