Ether falls as Sparkpool shuts after China clampdown

Ethereum was the biggest faller among the top 10 cryptocurrencies on Tuesday following an announcement by Sparkpool, the world's second-largest ether miner, that it was suspending its operations after a Chinese crackdown on cypto activities.

Ether, the second-biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, fell 5.4% to $2,925, while top-rated bitcoin fell $3.5% to $42,026.

On Friday, Sparkpool said it had stopped providing services to new users from mainland China following an announcement on the People's Bank of China (PBoC) website that said all crypto-related activities are illegal.

Clampdown intensifies

China has intensified its restrictions on cryptocurrencies in recent months, with bans on activities such as mining and trading. The PBoC also banned the country's banks and payment services firms such as Alibaba from providing crypto transaction services.

On Tuesday morning, Sparkpool's website prominently displayed this message:

Mongolian mining rigs seized

Under Friday's intensified crackdown on the industry, China's Xinhua state news agency reported on Tuesday that the Chinese authorities had seized more than 10,000 crypto-mining rigs from a mining operation run from a retail park warehouse in Inner Mongolia.

The report concluded that Inner Mongolian authorities have, so far this year, shut down 45 cryptocurrency mining projects, saving 6.58 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity - equivalent, it says, to two million tonnes of coal.

Read more: Alibaba to stop selling crypto mining rigs

Related topics

#Ethereum #Cryptocurrency

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