China mining ban: What happened and how it changed global crypto

When China mining ban, a sweeping government policy that shut down cryptocurrency mining operations across the country in 2021. Also known as crypto mining crackdown, it didn’t just disrupt a few farms—it rewired the entire Bitcoin network overnight. Before the ban, China controlled over 70% of global Bitcoin mining power. Mines were packed into warehouses in Sichuan, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang, running on cheap hydro and coal power. Then, in May 2021, the government ordered every mining rig offline. No warnings. No grace period. Just silence.

The ripple effect was immediate. Bitcoin’s hash rate dropped by half in weeks. Miners scrambled. Some packed up entire data centers and shipped them to Kazakhstan, Texas, and Georgia. Others folded. The ones who survived learned one thing: relying on a single country for mining is a gamble. Bitcoin mining, the process of verifying transactions and securing the blockchain through computational power became decentralized by force, not design. And crypto regulations, government rules that control how digital assets are mined, traded, or taxed suddenly became the biggest factor in where mining happened next. Countries that welcomed miners—like the U.S. and Canada—saw a surge in energy demand and infrastructure investment. Meanwhile, China turned its focus to its own digital yuan, leaving crypto behind entirely.

What’s left today? A mining industry that’s more spread out, more expensive, and more regulated. The cheap, unregulated era is over. Miners now track electricity costs, local laws, and climate conditions like stock prices. And while some still dream of finding the next Sichuan, the truth is: there won’t be another one. The China mining ban didn’t kill crypto—it forced it to grow up. Below, you’ll find real stories from miners who moved, exchanges that lost users, and projects that faded after losing their Chinese user base. No fluff. Just what actually happened after the power went out.