Along with its increasingly fraught relationship with the US and growing discontent within the country, Iran has to deal with a new problem: a fast-growing industry in mining crypto-currencies that is sapping the country’s electricity supply. A raft of new firms have been set up, often with the help of entrepreneurs from Iran’s geopolitical ally China, to mine bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency. The companies are exploiting Iran’s heavily subsidised electricity supply. The main obstacle to making profits from mining operations is the huge quantities of electricity needed to run their complex computing requirements. However, in Iran’s soaring summer temperatures, the republic’s leaders believe that air conditioners for the country’s 81 million residents are a more important priority than bitcoins.

Source: The Times June 30, 2019 10:52 UTC