Former Chinese Official Sentenced to Life for Enabling Crypto Mining

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• Former Chinese party official Xiao Yi was convicted for abuse of power and bribery, receiving a life imprisonment sentence.
• Xiao Yi misused his authority to support the growth of Bitcoin mining by facilitating financial support and power supply arrangements.
• China has banned cryptocurrency trading, crypto mining is classified as undesirable due to its environmental impact, and is now illegal.

Former Party Official Sentenced for Crypto Mining

The Hangzhou Intermediate People’s Court has convicted a former Chinese party official, Xiao Yi, for abuse of power and bribery. Xiao Yi has received a life imprisonment sentence for misuse of his authority to support the growth of Bitcoin mining by facilitating financial support and power supply arrangements.

China’s Ban On Cryptocurrency

In September 2017, the Chinese authorities banned Bitcoin trading and other cryptocurrencies. In 2019, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) classified crypto mining as undesirable due to its negative impact on the environment. Later on in 2021, China’s state council announced that crypto mining was banned and classified as an illegal activity.

Bribery Charges

The report noted that the bribery charges were categorized as notably substantial with bribes totaling almost $17.4 million while the abuse of power charges were deemed exceptionally serious.

Environmental Impact

Crypto mining is considered an undesirable activity in China due to its environmental impact which includes using large amounts of energy resources from fossil fuels such as coal or natural gas resulting in increased carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

Penalties For Crypto Mining

The penalties for those found guilty of engaging in crypto mining activities are severe including fines or even prison sentences depending on how serious their offenses are deemed to be by authorities in China.