Page 13 - bne_Tech_11_2018

Blockchain & Cryptocurrency
November 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 13
Major crypto mining farm opens in Armenia
A new crypto mining farm that claims to be one of the largest in the world has opened in the Armenian capital Yerevan.
According to local media reports, the farm is a joint venture between Armenian’s Multi Group which was founded by Gagik Tsarukyan, whose Tsarukyan Alliance is the second largest bloc in the Armenian parliament, and international mining firm Omnia Tech.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, who recently talked of the importance of turning Armenia into a major tech destination, toured the facility ahead of the launch on October 18, a video posted on Omnia’s Facebook page shows.
"Accompanied by the most important guests and the latest technology, the beautiful land of Armenia witnessed the events of our global launch!” the company said on October 21.
The farm currently has 3,000 Bitcoin and Ethere- um mining machines, following an investment of around $50mn, News Armenia reported. There are plans to boost capacity to as many as 120,000 machines in future.
Omnia has been the subject of some controversy as it was accused of misappropriating the brand name of cloud mining firm Genesis Mining, according to Coin Telegraph.
Ukraine to Legalize Cryptos by 2021
Jose Antonio Lanz
The adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies is approaching every day to become a global phenomenon. Also, although the pro- cess is slow, every step forward is a victory for the consolidation of a revolution that can change the world of finance and business.
The last victory for crypto proponents comes from a small European country. A few days ago, the Ministry of Economic Development of Ukraine of- ficially started the legalization process for crypto- currencies to normalize their use within the state.
In an official press release the government of Ukraine mentioned that they seek to resolve the state of uncertainty related to the legal status that cryptocurrencies have in the region:
“... In Ukraine there is a legal uncertainty about ac- tivities related to virtual currencies (cryptocurrency), including their legal status, taxation of transactions with them, the possibility of signing smart contracts (a contract concluded with a special computer algo- rithm and execution of which is carried out in auto- matic mode) ...