Study: Amid Mining Bans, China Still Commands World’s Second-Largest Share of Bitcoin Hashrate

New data stemming from the latest Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) report on bitcoin mining indicates that China still holds the second position in terms of global hashrate. While China commands close to 22% of Bitcoin’s global hashrate, the United States currently dominates with 37.69%, according to CCAF researchers.

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance updated the organization’s bitcoin mining data and map in order to highlight 2022 hashrate statistics. In July 2021, Bitcoin.com News reported on the CCAF’s data that showed China’s hashrate dropping by 46%.

At the time, China’s government enforced a ban on bitcoin mining and a great deal of the country’s miners re-located. However, the latest CCAF stats show China’s hashrate is still very prominent as the country is the second-largest leader in terms of global hashpower dedicated to the Bitcoin (BTC) network.

The study’s authors believe the miners located in China are likely leveraging virtual private networks (VPNs) to conceal their locations. The report indicates that China’s share of the overall Bitcoin network hashrate was 21.11%.

CCAF’s data derives from the organization’s partner mining pools Foundry, Poolin, Viabtc, and Btc.com. Moreover, some of the hashrate stemming from China did not leverage VPNs and CCAF’s researchers believe those miners are comfortable with their locations unhidden.

CCAF’s report notes that a “non-trivial” quantity of Chinese miners may have thought the ban wasn’t a big deal. “It is probable that a non-trivial share of Chinese miners quickly adapted to the new circumstances and continued operating covertly while hiding their tracks using foreign proxy services to deflect attention and scrutiny.”

Following CCAF’s updated data in July and October 2021, a CNBC report noted that unnamed sources told the reporter MacKenzie Sigalos that bitcoin miners were still located in China. China’s hashrate is sizable compared to a great number of other countries, however, the U.S. still dominates Bitcoin’s global hashrate by 37.69%.

CCAF’s data from last July showed the U.S. captured 16.8% of the global hashrate last year. If CCAF’s data is correct, that would mean the U.S. hashrate has climbed 124.34% since July 2021. Pool distribution metrics match with CCAF’s data as the mining pool Foundry USA has captured 19.5% of the global hashrate during the last three months. 13,182 blocks were mined during the three-month period and Foundry USA found 2,566 of them.

What do you think about the latest CCAF data that shows close to 22% of the world’s Bitcoin hashrate still resides in China? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.