The European Commission is reportedly planning to label Bitcoin as harmful to the environment and a threat to the EU’s energy security. The EC’s proposed measures include carbon taxes and authority for the ECB to create ESG rules around Bitcoin investments. ESMA has indicated that once the report is accepted in the EU, it will advocate for it to become the norm in other nations.
The European Commission doesn’t like Bitcoin and plans to crack down on mining operations. A recent report includes harsh labeling of digital assets. Additionally, EU regulators could restrict power supply to Bitcoin mining facilities on the block.
On January 31, crypto environmentalist and venture capitalist Daniel Batten shared a section of a European Commission report highlighting its plans to restrict crypto.
Is the EU Planning to Ban Bitcoin?
According to a published section of the report, it paves the way for a de facto EU ban on Bitcoin mining in 2025:
“While we were sleeping, the European Commission has been creating a report in which they plan to label Bitcoin as harmful to the environment, a threat to the EU’s energy security and a haven for financial criminals.”
According to the report (for which no sources have been provided), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) are leading the offensive. The EC’s current position on Bitcoin mining is that it is an “Environmentally damaging, energy-wasting and obsolete consensus mechanism.”
The report proposes additional measures to restrict mining activities. These include carbon taxes and the possibility of EU members cutting off electricity to BTC miners for “energy security” reasons. Additionally, it will formally label BTC as harmful to the environment.
The Commission will also empower the ECB to develop ESG rules around institutional investment in Bitcoin. The central bank will economically discourage or “prohibit investment in Bitcoin” and related products. In other words, the European Central Bank will be able to use its power to effectively ban Bitcoin for EU members.
Batten stated that the founders of the Open Dialogue Foundation, Lyuda Kozlovska and Bota Jardemalie, have done the hard work. They have been reading all the EC documents and “fighting this for 18 months,” he added.
He warned that this could set a precedent for other nations. ESMA, which works closely with the ECB, has noted that once the report is accepted in the EU, “they will push for it to become the norm in other nations.”
“Like other wars, this war starts in the EU, but it may not end there.”
He added that the EU Central Bank has the resources, knowledge of the legal process and track record of “peer-reviewed disinformation” about Bitcoin’s environmental impact.
In December 2023, Batten suggested that the EC proposal should be responded by sending letters to human rights defenders Bota Jardemalie and Lyudmyla Kozlovska. Batten recommended exposing the way in which Bitcoin mining can help meet the sustainability objectives of the European Union, carrying out the process with the use of renewable energy.
Environmental Impact of Bitcoin Mining in the EU
Earlier this week, it was reported that a UN study on Bitcoin mining was scrutinized for its reliance on outdated sources and selective bias.
Furthermore, the FUD of Bitcoin’s environmental impact has been debunked many times in recent months. Furthermore, the percentage of renewable energy used in global BTC mining operations continues to increase.
However, central bankers will continue to wave the red flag at decentralized cryptoassets as they continue to push CBDC plans.
By Leonardo Perez
