Bitcoin, proof-of-work ban removed from European Union’s MiCA

The European parliament has scrapped wording from proposed legislation that would have banned cryptocurrencies that rely on the proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism, like Bitcoin.

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Fast facts

• The European Parliament member in charge of spearheading the bill known as the Markets in Crypto Assets (MiCA) legislation, Stefan Berger, confirmed the removal of the language on Tuesday.
  

• The bill seeks to establish broad oversight of the crypto industry, such as introducing a licensing scheme for service providers and laying out rules for stablecoins.
  

• EU lawmakers had sought to ban the networks starting in January 2025 due to the heavy energy requirements, but had indefinitely postponed the Feb. 28 vote following backlash.
  

• Bitcoin’s high energy usage is a growing point of contention amid a global push towards decarbonization.
  

• The University of Cambridge ranks Bitcoin’s total energy consumption as the 27th-highest energy guzzler when measured alongside countries, followed by 28th-ranked Ukraine.
  

• The EU has not set a new date to vote on the pending MiCA legislation.

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