In July, Angola’s cabinet approved a bill banning bitcoin mining. The bill is now before parliament and, if passed, Angolan President João Lourenço will only have to sign it.
Finance Minister Vera Sousa explained that the initiative is aimed at protecting the country’s public power grid. Despite being the second largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa, Angola gets 70% of its electricity from renewable sources.
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“Cryptocurrency mining should be banned in the country, and the illegal possession of cryptocurrency mining equipment, improper use of electrical equipment and interference in the country’s national energy system should be considered illegal,” Souza said.
According to the minister, the entry into force of the law banning mining will be the first step towards restricting the use of digital currencies. In addition, the central bank fears that crypto-assets could be used for money laundering and terrorist financing.
However, local industry participants have criticized the ban, calling on the government to regulate cryptocurrencies in a sensible manner. Manuel Euclides, founder of local crypto exchange Yetubit, believes that signing this law will greatly hinder the adoption of cryptocurrencies in Angola. The government could stay ahead by partnering with industry companies. Otherwise, it will lose tax revenue from local citizens investing in cryptocurrencies and mining companies willing to pay for energy consumption.
As a reminder, last year New York State imposed a two-year moratorium on the mining of cryptocurrencies using the Proof-of-Work (PoW) consensus mining method. In the fall of 2022, the Moldovan government also banned mining due to the energy crisis.