- U.S. President Donald Trump’s ambition to position America at the forefront of Bitcoin mining is now under serious threat.
- Increased import taxes are compressing U.S. miners’ profit levels outright.
- Russian miners, with access to cheaper imports, are poised to take up the bulk of global mining hashpower.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s bid to position America at the forefront of Bitcoin mining is now under serious threat. Trump’s recent tariff schemes have overshadowed the country’s efforts at mining, leaving market participants with escalated costs and doubts. In spite of Trump’s positive attitudes toward crypto, fresh tariffs imposed on mining machinery imports are poised to dash profitability, leaving the gate wide open for competitors like Russia.
From February to early April, Trump’s tariff statements shook both conventional and crypto markets. His announcement of retaliatory import tariffs began at 10% but surged past 50% for some goods. A reprieve from the temporary 90-day pause on all tariffs, excluding China, arrived in May. However, for Bitcoin miners reliant on imported hardware, the reprieve is temporary.
Most Bitcoin mining rigs, specifically Bitmain Technologies’s China-based Antminer line, which controls well over 80% of the market worldwide, are made outside of the United States. Therefore, boosted import taxes are compressing U.S. miners’ profit levels outright.
Growing Fears of Overseas Advantage
Ethan Vera, Chief Operating Officer at Luxor Technology, expressed concern about the escalating tariffs.
“As of today, we are facing a 12.6% tariff from units shipping from Asia to the U.S.,” said Ethan Vera.
Rates might rise to as much as 38.6% by July, depending on where minerals are sourced, unless there are negotiations, according to Vera. With mining pools and services in 32 countries, Luxor is afraid of declining demand from American clients as prices rise.
Shifting economics may confer a competitive advantage to Russia. Russian miners, with access to cheaper imports, are poised to take up the bulk of global mining hashpower. American and European capital might shift investments to nations such as Canada, Ethiopia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Paraguay. At the same time, China-based investors might prefer Russian operations even more as tariff burdens delay U.S. expansion plans.
BitFuFu, yet another Bitcoin mining company, has joined in similar warnings while affirming its pledge to U.S. operations. Even though the firm pre-ordered thousands of Antminer S21 machines prior to the announcement of the tariff, the break has given it some breathing room. However, BitFuFu acknowledged tracking the policy environment very keenly, aware of the fact that power prices still overshadow the cost of hardware in mining economics.
Equipment Shortage and Supply Chain Challenges
Luxor was quick to order equipment deals as soon as Trump’s tariff proposals emerged. Despite the halt imposed by the 90-day delay, the company is expecting to see a rush in shipments approaching the July expiry of the deadline. Several American miners are keen to buy as many machines as possible in anticipation of increases, not wanting to risk similar supply chain bottlenecks later.
Bitdeer, Bitmain’s cloud mining division, is restructuring procurement initiatives to align. It will release its “Made in USA” Sealminer machines later this year to lower reliance on imports. Bitdeer’s Jeff LaBerge emphasized the flexibility the company has due to the fact that international facilities enable machines to move around the globe to stay profitable under volatile tariffs.
In the longer term, experts such as Vera warn it will not happen overnight to shift mining computer hardware production to the U.S. While some of the last stages of assembly are already occurring domestically, the majority of raw materials and components still come from Asia. It might take some years before there is meaningful American-based production.
