How Chinese bitcoin manufacturers are circumventing U.S. tariffs
Bitmain, Canaan and MicroBT build over 90% of global mining rigs – essentially computers dedicated to number-crunching that produces bitcoin. Establishing U.S. bases could shield them from tariffs but risks stoking security concerns the U.S. has with China in areas as varied as chip making and energy security.
'The U.S.-China trade war is triggering structural, not superficial, changes in bitcoin's supply chains,' said Guang Yang, chief technology officer at crypto tech provider Conflux Network. Moreover, for U.S. firms, 'this goes beyond tariffs. It's a strategic pivot toward 'politically acceptable' hardware sources,' Yang said.
Bitmain, the biggest of the three by sales, started U.S. production of mining rigs in December in a 'strategic move' following Trump's presidential electoral win a month earlier.
Canaan started trial production in the U.S. with the aim of avoiding tariffs after Trump on April 2 announced his so-called Liberation Day levies, senior executive Leo Wang told Reuters. The initiative is exploratory as the volatile tariff situation precludes heavy investment, he said.
Third-ranked MicroBT in a statement said it is 'actively implementing a localisation strategy in the U.S.' to 'avoid the impact of tariffs'.
The trio dominate a sector analysts estimated to be worth $12 billion by 2028. It is the upstream of a business chain that extends through the energy-intensive process of mining bitcoin, the supporting IT infrastructure and the trading platforms.
Source: Reuters
Image Credit: Stock Image
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
44 minutes ago
- The National
Conservative network Newsmax agrees to pay $67m in defamation case over 2020 election claims
The conservative network Newsmax will pay $67 million to settle a lawsuit accusing it of defaming a voting equipment company by spreading lies about President Donald Trump 's 2020 election loss, according to documents filed on Monday. The settlement comes after Fox News paid $787.5 million to settle a similar lawsuit in 2023 and Newsmax paid what court papers say was $40 million to settle a libel lawsuit from a different voting machine manufacturer, Smartmatic, which also was a target of pro-Trump conspiracy theories on the network. Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis had ruled earlier that Newsmax did defame the Denver company Dominion Voting Systems by airing false information about the company and its equipment. But Mr Davis left it to a jury to eventually decide whether that was done with malice, and if so how much Dominion deserved from Newsmax in damages. Newsmax and Dominion reached the settlement before the trial could take place. The disclosure came as Mr Trump, who lost his 2020 re-election bid to the Democrat Joe Biden, vowed in a social media post on Monday to eliminate mail-in ballots and voting machines such as those supplied by Dominion and other companies. It not known how the Republican President could achieve that. The same judge also handled the Dominion-Fox News case and made a similar ruling that the network repeated numerous lies from Mr Trump's allies about his 2020 loss despite internal communications showing Fox officials knew the claims were bogus. 'How long are we going to play along with election fraud?' the Newsmax host Bob Sellers said two days after the 2020 election was called for Mr Biden, according to internal documents revealed as part of the case. Newsmax took pride that it was not calling the election for Mr Biden and, the internal documents show, saw a business opportunity in catering to viewers who believed Mr Trump won. At Newsmax, employees repeatedly warned against false allegations from pro-Trump guests such as lawyer Sidney Powell, according to documents in the lawsuit. In one text, even Newsmax's owner Chris Ruddy, a Trump ally, said he found it 'scary' that Mr Trump was meeting with Ms Powell. Dominion was at the heart of many of the wild claims aired by guests on Newsmax and elsewhere. The network retracted some of its more bombastic allegations in December 2020. Though Mr Trump has insisted his fraud claims are real, there is no evidence that they were, and the lawsuits in the Fox and Newsmax cases show that some of the President's biggest supporters knew they were false at the time. Mr Trump's attorney general at the time, William Barr, said there was no evidence of widespread fraud. Mr Trump and his backers lost dozens of lawsuits alleging fraud, some before Trump-appointed judges. Numerous recounts, reviews and audits of the election results, including some run by Republicans, turned up no signs of significant wrongdoing or error and affirmed Mr Biden's win.
Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
Faraday Future launches 'EAI + Crypto' dual-flywheel & dual-bridge ecosystem
Faraday Future Intelligent Electric Inc, a California-based global shared intelligent electric mobility ecosystem company, has officially launched its 'EAI + Crypto' Dual-Flywheel & Dual-Bridge Ecosystem Strategy — marking the beginning of a new chapter in AI mobility and Web3 integration. This initiative integrates Embodied AI (EAI) with the explosive growth of the crypto asset economy to create a two-way, independently operating circular growth engine between Web2 and Web3, positioning FF at the forefront of the next era in global industrial and financial evolution. A new growth paradigm Faraday Future believes that AI represents the next great leap in productivity, while Crypto and Web3 signify a revolution in the relations of production. Together, these forces offer a once-in-decades opportunity for transformation — a meta-chemistry that FF aims to drive through its newly launched strategy. 'The next decade could be a super long bull cycle for the crypto market,' said Ian Calderon, FF Co-Creation Officer and Founding Board Member of the California Blockchain Working Group. 'FF is building a dual-engine circular growth system — combining the long-cycle, high-value EAI EV ecosystem with the short-cycle, high-velocity Crypto ecosystem. These two flywheels will empower each other, redefining what's possible in mobility and financial innovation.' Building the bridge between Web2 and Web3 FF's Dual-Bridge Strategy positions the Company as one of the first U.S.-listed public companies directly connecting real-world business operations with on-chain assets. Plans are underway to launch the EAI Vehicle Chain, enabling tokenized vehicle sales, crypto-based deposits, and Web3-native user engagement — while leveraging blockchain technology to create a decentralized and transparent mobility economy. 'The Dual-Flywheel & Dual-Bridge Strategy reflects our deep insights into the future of the global economy,' said YT Jia, Founder & Co-CEO of Faraday Future. 'FF is not just transitioning into a Web3 era — we are architecting it. This is how we deliver exponential value creation for our stockholders.' A new crypto infrastructure for capital markets FF also officially announced the C10 Index, a market-cap-weighted basket of the world's top 10 crypto assets (excluding stablecoins), calculated from midnight Pacific Time on August 16, 2025, with a base value of 1,000. The Index will be tracked in real-time on and the FF App. Accompanying the Index, the FFAI C10 Treasury is being launched — targeting $500M to $1B in initial crypto asset purchases, with a dedicated $30M funding round completed or nearly complete. Assets will be allocated using an 80% passive, 20% active strategy. The treasury is designed to provide sustainable returns, with staking yields estimated at 3%–5%, creating stable income that can fund product innovation, stock buybacks, and further asset growth. FF is also preparing to apply for a C10 ETF license, aiming to expand public access to the value potential of this portfolio. The Crypto Flywheel strategy — operated through a wholly owned and independently managed subsidiary, FFAI Crypto Treasury and Bridging Holdings Inc. — is expected to dramatically enhance FF's income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow. With on-chain assets serving as both reserves and flexible capital, the strategy enables FF to generate stable income through staking, reduce reliance on high-cost financing, and improve net asset value and structure. It aims to accelerate product development and market expansion through a 1/3–1/3–1/3 profit reinvestment model. FF's crypto and EV businesses are operated under separate legal and financial structures to ensure risk isolation, operational independence, and asset transparency. Digital assets will be held by third-party custodians and will be fully verifiable on-chain. The structure is designed to allow strategic synergies without cross-subsidization, ensuring both lines of business can flourish independently — while reinforcing each other. With this launch, Faraday Future offers investors access to potential dual benefits from the AI mobility and crypto asset markets. This revolutionary move supports the Company's long-standing commitment to maximize stockholder value in a future-forward and sustainable manner.
Zawya
4 hours ago
- Zawya
Mideast Stocks: Most Gulf bourses slip on geopolitics, Fed rate cut uncertainty
Most Gulf equities ended lower on Monday, led by the Qatar index, as investors turned cautious while awaiting developments from a meeting between the U.S. and Ukraine presidents, and an annual Federal Reserve conference at Jackson Hole. Friday's U.S. data showed July retail sales rose as expected, but weaker consumer confidence and softer factory output suggested tariffs were weighing on parts of the economy, clouding the Fed's rate path. Traders are pricing an about 85% chance of a 25-basis-point cut on September 17, with further easing by year-end. Monetary policy shifts in the U.S. have a significant impact on Gulf markets, where most currencies are pegged to the dollar. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump said Ukraine should abandon hopes of regaining annexed Crimea or joining NATO, ahead of a meeting with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskiy and European leaders in Washington. The Qatari benchmark index was down for a second day and fell 0.6% as investors took profits after an earnings-fuelled rally, with all constituents in the red. Qatar National Bank declined 0.9% and Industries Qatar fell 1.5%. Saudi Arabia's benchmark stock index slipped 0.1%, ending a two-session rise, with most stocks lower. ACWA Power fell 1.5%, while Saudi Arabian Mining and Umm Al Qura for Development and Construction each lost 1.1%. Umm Al Qura said it sold a land plot for 145.1 million riyals. The Abu Dhabi benchmark index eased 0.1%, its ninth straight decline and longest losing streak since February 2024. Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank fell 1.6% and First Abu Dhabi Bank slipped 1.3%. "GCC markets are exhibiting signs of consolidation after a period of strong gains following the end of the Q2 earnings season," said Milad Azar, market analyst at XTB MENA. Dubai's benchmark stock index rose for a third straight session and inched up 0.1%, supported by gains in finance and real estate shares. Emaar Properties advanced 1% and Emirates NBD, the emirate's largest lender, added 1.2%. Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index fell 0.4%, pressured by a 3.8% drop in a tobacco maker Eastern Company and a 1.3% decline in Talaat Moustafa. Arabian Cement jumped 5.6% after second-quarter group profit more than tripled. SAUDI ARABIA lost 0.1% to 10,886 KUWAIT down 0.4% to 9,318 QATAR fell 0.6% to 11,516 EGYPT down 0.4% to 35,825 BAHRAIN lost 0.1% to 1,934 OMAN up 0.2% to 4,930 ABU DHABI down 0.1% to 10,213 DUBAI added 0.1% to 6,129 (Reporting by Md Manzer Hussain; Editing by Leroy Leo)
