The Dark Side Of Kyrgyzstan's Crypto Boom

While Kyrgyz authorities were preparing the population for possible electricity shortages this winter, a giant crypto-mining farm was consuming more power every day than cement factories, gold mines, and bazaars that employ thousands of people. Until this week, perhaps. On July 26, in a direct response to an investigation by RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service (Radio Azattyk), President Sadyr Japarov tried to justify the work of an energy-hungry cryptocurrency-mining operation in Chui Province, near Bishkek, the capital. The operation close to an electrical…