As Bhutan fights youth migration and economic tensions, its prime minister says Bitcoin mining should provide a path forward for others to continue.
Bhutan, a Buddhist kingdom on the eastern edge of the Himalayas known for its monasteries, appears to have placed a strong bet on Bitcoin (BTC) as a possible way to mitigate economic problems despite the infamous risks associated with cryptocurrency price fluctuations.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, Bhutan’s prime minister Tshering Tobgay called it “a simple strategic choice that many people earned and earned billions of dollars,” and added that “the government should do that (crypto mining).”
Bhutan faces several economic problems, including high unemployment among young people and an increase in skilled workers leaving the country. In 2022, more than 10% of the educated population moved, the report reads. Some believe Bitcoin is helping to reduce that trend as the government reportedly sold $100 million worth of cryptocurrency in 2024 to raise public servants’ salaries.
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The exact size of Bhutan’s BTC holdings remains unknown, but this means that data from various blockchain analytics companies is worth more than $600 million or roughly 30% of the country’s GDP.
Bitcoin mining requires a lot of energy, but Bhutan has a lot of hydropower and cool temperatures, so this could actually be an exception. “It is important for Bhutan to utilize green energy in terms of mining Bitcoin as part of its investment portfolio,” said Ujwal Deep Dahal, head of Bhutan’s sovereign holding company Druk Holdings.
read more: Bitcoin Holdings in Bhutan exceeds $1 billion
