Despite a continuing crackdown on illicit mining activities, the Paraguayan Congress may soon vote on a new law to regulate Bitcoin (BTC) mining.
Legislator María Constancia Benítez introduced the measure, according to the Spanish-language news source Criptonoticias.
According to reports, the measure “highlights the ability of the Bitcoin mining sector to boost the economic and technical growth of Paraguay,” giving the impression that it is strongly pro-business.
Before her fellow MPs can vote on Benítez’s plan, it must clear the committee stage. Paraguayan lawmakers had tried to regulate the industry four times before Benítez’s proposed bill.
Both chambers of Congress passed a private member’s bill in 2022 that mining companies and their attorneys had drafted, but the president vetoed it.
Nonetheless, legislators’ continued interest in making Paraguay a leading Bitcoin mining destination is shown by the new measure.
Bitcoin mining has the potential to “draw international capital and produce new employment,” as mentioned in Benítez’s proposed legislation. The bill’s text is as follows:
“Legalizing cryptocurrency mining is crucial because it might increase jobs, entice investment from both within and outside the country, and benefit the economy as a whole. Doing so will establish Paraguay as a technical powerhouse in the Latin American area.”
According to the measure, operators would be able to enter “an atmosphere of legal and economic security” if the government were to regulate Bitcoin mining.
“The continuous growth” of the BTC mining business was supposedly dependent on this second element, according to Benítez.
The purpose of the legislation is to have the sector follow certain rules on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing.
Additionally, it suggests that Bitcoin miners employ renewable energy sources with a significant emphasis on environmental protection by adhering to stringent environmental standards.
The latter argument will be an effortless sell. Hydroelectric power plants provide almost all of Paraguay’s electricity.
Global mining businesses have already established data centers near key dams, attesting to this. During the rainy season, when fast water flows provide more electricity than Paraguayan enterprises can usually consume, the dams sell the excess energy to miners.
However, it is probable that the bill will encounter a significant amount of opposition. Power companies have attributed network disruptions to illicit crypto mining.
A significant number of miners have unlawfully connected their devices to local utilities. The recent seizure of around 3,000 Bitcoin ASIC miners is evidence of the subsequent police crackdown on the industry.
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