The number of mining farms in Russia has seen a significant increase over the past year, since Moscow legalized the crypto activity in 2024.

The upward trend is largely due to growing investments in the sector following its recognition as a legitimate business, industry sources say. Others claim illegal mining is contributing, too.

Russia counts its cryptocurrency farms using AI tech

Farms minting digital currencies like Bitcoin have increased by 44% this year despite a ban that’s now covering a dozen Russian regions, affected by energy shortages blamed on the mining boom.

Their total number has reached 196,900, according to a report produced by a new system designed to identify such facilities, even when they are not officially…