bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

Kosovo police on Saturday seized hundreds of cryptocurrency mining machines and arrested one person in the tense ethnic-Serb majority north as the country suffered an energy crisis.
Cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin are created through solving complex equations – an endeavour that consumes enormous amounts of energy
Tensions between the Serb-majority area and the ethnic Albanian majority government are running high and Kosovo’s government on Tuesday brought in a temporary ban on cryptocurrency mining in an effort to bring down electricity consumption.
During the operation police “confiscated 272 different anti-miner devices used for the production of bitcoin”, a police statement said.
One person was arrested, it said.
“The whole action took place and ended without incidents,” Interior Minister Xhelal Svecla said on Facebook.
The confiscated equipment uses as much electricity as 500 homes a month or between €60,000 and €120,000 (US$68,000 and US$136,000), said Finance Minister Hekuran Murati on Facebook.
“We cannot allow the illegal enrichment of some, at the expense of taxpayers,” Murati said.
El Salvador plans Bitcoin City in bid to become ‘Singapore of Latin America’
Ethnic Serbs in Kosovo’s four northern municipalities have not paid for their electricity since the end of the 1998-1999 war between independence-seeking ethnic Albanian guerilla and Serbian armed forces.
They do not recognise Pristina’s authority as they remain loyal to Belgrade.
According to local media, the total cost of the energy spent in the Serb-majority north is around €12 million a year.
The energy crisis in Kosovo has worsened after a production unit of one of the two main power plants stopped working and prompted the government to introduce power reductions in December.
Kosovo’s president Hashim Thaci resigns to face charges for war crimes
The crisis comes also as a result of rising global import prices and increasing demand.
Earlier this week, police carried out two operations in ethnic Albanian majority areas and seized 70 pieces of cryptocurrency mining equipment.
Economy Minister Artane Rizvanolli earlier this week labelled the hunt for cryptocurrency mining an “emergency measure” because of the crisis.
However, police operations raised questions over their legality as experts say there is no legal grounds to ban cryptocurrency mining as Kosovo has no law regulating the issue.
Pristina said in October it had drafted a bill on cryptocurrency which the parliament was expected to adopt by the end of the last year. The legislation is still pending however.


‘Sentiment is bleak’: bitcoin declines as geopolitical tensions add to risk-off mood

How things went ‘downhill’ for Vietnam’s once-booming cryptocurrency traders

Crypto rout set to deepen as Standard Chartered warns of further downside risks

Policy to products: Web3 innovation takes centre stage at Consensus Hong Kong

Bitcoin

Kosovo seizes hundreds of cryptocurrency mining devices; one person arrested

Cryptocurrency mining facilities are seen in Pristina, Kosovo. Photo: Reuters

Afghanistan: Kosovo will host Afghan evacuees who need more screening before travelling to US

Afghan refugees, fleeing the Afghan capital Kabul, exit a US air force plane upon their arrival at Pristina International airport in Kosovo on August 29. Photo: AFP

Kosovo opposition headed for landslide election victory

Supporters of the left-wing Self-Determination Movement party gather in Pristina, the capitol of Kosovo, on Sunday. Photo: AP

Supporters of Vetevendosje (Selfdetermination) movement celebrate their victory in parliamentary elections in Pristina on February 14, 2021. - A left-wing reformist party was poised to dominate Kosovo's early parliamentary elections, exit polls showed on February 14, 2021, following a fiery campaign that tapped into fatigue and frustration with the political establishment. (Photo by Armend NIMANI / AFP)

Election commission employees count casted ballots after the polls closed in parliamentary elections in capital Pristina, Kosovo, Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021. Kosovo’s voters defied freezing weather to vote in an early parliamentary election to form a new government amid the coronavirus pandemic, an economic downturn and stalled negotiations with wartime foe Serbia. (AP Photo/ Visar Kryeziu)

Kosovo’s president Hashim Thaci steps down to face charges for war crimes

Kosovo president Hashim Thaci. Photo: EPA-EFE

epa08799906 Leader of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), Kadri Veseli, reacts after he was elected new speaker of the parliament of the Republic of Kosovo in Pristina, Kosovo, 07 September 2017 (reissued 05 November 2020). The Specialist Prosecutor's Office (SPO) confirmed charges of war crimes against Kadri Veseli. He is expected to be transferred to the International Criminal Court in The Hague. EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

FILE PHOTO: Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci leaves after being interviewed by war crimes prosecutors after being indicted by a special tribunal, in The Hague, Netherlands July 13, 2020. REUTERS/Eva Plevier/File Photo

Kosovo president Hashim Thaci charged with war crimes over 1990s killings

Kosovo President Hashim Thaci attends a security forces ceremony in Pristina in December 2018. Photo: Reuters

epa08506171 (FILE) Former Speaker of the Parliament of the Republic of Kosovo and chairman of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Kadri Veseli arrives at the parliament building in Pristina, Kosovo, 03 June 2020 (reissued 24 June 2020). The Specialist Prosecutor's Office (SPO) filed a ten-count Indictment with the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC) for the Court's consideration, charging Kadri Veseli, with a range of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, enforced disappearance of persons, persecution, and torture. The Indictment is only an accusation. It is the result of a lengthy investigation and reflects the SPO's determination that it can prove all of the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

(FILES) This file photo taken on May 8, 2018 shows former US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell posing for photographers during an accreditation ceremony for new Ambassadors at the presidential Bellevue Palace in Berlin, Germany. - The US envoy to Serbia and Kosovo said June 15, 2020 the Balkan rivals have agreed to meet at the White House in late June to try and resume talks that have been shelved for over a year. The meeting was announced on Twitter by former US ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell, who has been dispatched by President Donald Trump to tackle lingering hostilities between Serbia and its former province Kosovo. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)

epa08506294 (FILE) - (FILE) The file picture dated on 10 December 2010 shows Kosovo's Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci greeting his supporters during the closing electoral rally in Pristina, Kosovo, 10 December 2010 (reissued 24 June 2020). According to reports, The Specialist Prosecutor's Office (SPO) filed a ten-count Indictment with the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSC) for the Court's consideration, charging Hashim Thaci, with a range of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including murder, enforced disappearance of persons, persecution, and torture. The Indictment is only an accusation. It is the result of a lengthy investigation and reflects the SPO's determination that it can prove all of the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. EPA-EFE/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

News

World

Europe

Kosovo’s government on Tuesday brought in a temporary ban on cryptocurrency mining in an effort to bring down electricity consumption
During the operation police ‘confiscated 272 different anti-miner devices used for the production of bitcoin’ and one person was arrested, police said


Kosovo’s government on Tuesday brought in a temporary ban on cryptocurrency mining in an effort to bring down electricity consumption.


Cryptocurrency