DCG’s $100 Million Plan to Diminish China’s Dominance on Bitcoin Production

Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group has entered into the bitcoin mining world with the announcement of its new wholly-owned subsidiary, Foundry.

“Digital asset mining and staking provide the backbone of the blockchain technology that will drive that advancement,” noted Silbert, the founder and CEO of DGC. The company runs its own mining operations and provides financing and equipment to crypto startups.

Through its fourth subsidiary, Foundry, which was “quietly” formed in 2019, Silbert will be betting $100 million on the mining sector. Genesis, Grayscale Investments, and CoinDesk are the other three subsidiaries of Digital Currency Group.

Mike Colyer, a former Core Scientific executive, and veteran GE, will be heading the company as the chief executive officer.

With this latest venture, Silbert is looking to bring back some of the bitcoin production to the US from China.

Unveiling our 4th subsidiary, Foundry, a bitcoin mining and crypto staking business

We have committed to invest an additional $100 mm through 2021 to help build out the North American mining industry

Oh, and we believe we may already be the largest BTC miner in North America… https://t.co/NJzfJdKNv1

— Barry Silbert (@barrysilbert) August 27, 2020

China accounts for more than 65% of the global bitcoin hash rate while the US only accounts for just over 7%, as per the data source from the University of Cambridge.

Silbert believes this is a ripe opportunity for North American crypto firms to capture a considerable share of the world’s mining power.

For cheap power, which is abundant in China during the rainy season, Foundry is launching operations in Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and upstate New York along with British Columbia and Quebec in Canada.

In addition to providing white-glove service to mining co's, Foundry aims to decentralize #bitcoin's hashrate, >60% of which is currently housed in China. As hashrate in China continues to increase, we are removing the roadblocks to its growth in North America. ↗

— Foundry (@FoundryServices) August 27, 2020

Moreover, the company has already been working with Shenzhen-based bitcoin miner manufacturers MicroBT and Bitmain towards this goal. Jordan Chen, COO of MicroBT said,

“Foundry’s understanding of the mining industry and DCG’s full support have made it a key partner in our expansion across North America in the past year. We plan to continue collaborating with Foundry as we focus on increasing our global market share.”

Although, as Silbert notes, “The mining space is littered with the carcasses of failed mining efforts,” Foundry is poised to success because of the concerned lawmakers and policy groups in Washington, D.C., about China dominating bitcoin production.