Crypto Mining as a Strategic Resource: What Awaits the Industry in 2025?
The global race for control over digital assets is accelerating. In August 2024, Russia officially legalized crypto mining. By early 2025, the United States had added Bitcoin and several altcoins to its national reserves, while Thailand’s SEC officially approved USDT and USDC for cryptocurrency trading, allowing these stablecoins to be listed on regulated exchanges across the country. According to some industry analysts these developments signal the beginning of a new geopolitical battle over cryptocurrency — one that could shape the global economic balance for decades to come. Kiryu Artemev, Head of Legal at BeMine, a leading global mining provider, explains.
Why Are Nations Making Their Move Now?
While some countries tighten control over cryptocurrencies, others are actively integrating them into their economies. What role will mining play in this shift?
“Mining has long evolved beyond simply generating digital assets,” Artemev notes. “Today, it is a strategic industry that allows countries to strengthen their economic independence.
Russia, the U.S., and Thailand — each in their unique way — are proving that cryptocurrencies can no longer be ignored as part of the global economy.”
Russia: A New Era or a Trap for Miners?
Russia’s legalization of mining in August 2024 sparked widespread debate. While it opened up new opportunities for entrepreneurs, questions remain about how favorable the long-term conditions will be for miners.
“Russia’s move to legalize mining opened up opportunities on paper, but the reality remains complex,” Artemev explains. “Miners are officially required to sell their earnings through state-approved platforms — yet no such platforms currently exist. There is still no legal way to sell mined cryptocurrency domestically in order to cover basic expenses like electricity. As a result, many are forced to route transactions through neighboring countries such as Uzbekistan and Belarus, where proper infrastructure is already in place. Inside Russia, miners rely on screenshots from exchanges and declarations of wallet addresses to fulfill reporting requirements. It’s a system that looks structured from the outside but offers little clarity in practice — and puts Russian miners at a disadvantage globally. We’re closely watching how Russia’s next regulatory moves unfold.”
The U.S.: Bitcoin in National Reserves — A Precedent or a Monopoly Move?
The U.S. government’s decision to include Bitcoin (BTC) in national reserves was a groundbreaking moment. This marks the first time a cryptocurrency has been officially recognized as a strategic asset at the state level. However, the question remains: is this a step toward wider acceptance, or a move to tighten control over the market?
“The decision to add Bitcoin to national reserves may look like a symbolic step forward,” Artemev notes. “But in reality, the U.S. has already established itself as a dominant force in the mining landscape. Access to cheap credit and early regulatory support in certain states helped the country take the global lead in hashrate. At the same time, many of the largest mining pools remain under Chinese ownership, keeping China influential behind the scenes. So while headlines focus on the U.S.–Russia dynamic, the real strategic competition is unfolding between the U.S. and China. Even in the stablecoin space, USDT — originally tied to Chinese capital — continues to outpace USDC. The move to include Bitcoin in reserves isn’t a beginning. It’s part of a longer game already in motion.”
Mining at a Crossroads: Decentralization or Domination?
As regulations shift, mining is no longer just a tech-driven industry — it has become a crucial part of national economic strategies. Whether it remains a tool of financial freedom or turns into an instrument of government control depends on the rules set in the coming years.
“Cryptocurrency is at the threshold of a new phase,” Artemev concludes. “If governments continue to compete for control, it could reshape the very nature of mining and digital assets. It’s crucial that market participants retain their autonomy.”
The geopolitical role of cryptocurrencies is no longer theoretical — it’s unfolding in real time, with mining at the center of this shift. As nations redraw the digital borders of finance,
questions of access, control, and autonomy come into sharper focus. What began as a technical hobby has grown into a force with geopolitical weight.
For infrastructure providers like BeMine, these shifts are more than policy headlines — they define the operational realities of modern mining. As the world’s economic architecture evolves, the future of decentralization will depend not only on technology, but on how global systems choose to engage with it. In that uncertainty lies both risk and possibility — and the next chapter is only beginning.
