Leasing goes to mining – Newspaper Kommersant No. 194 (7395) dated 10/19/2022
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In Russia, financial leasing of mining equipment is gaining popularity. The total market volume at the end of the year can reach 1 billion rubles, and next year it will grow significantly. For miners, leasing creates an opportunity to mine cryptocurrency with leverage. However, large leasing companies are not going into this business yet because of the legal uncertainty surrounding it. The conjuncture of the cryptocurrency market itself leaves much to be desired, where experts do not expect a revival until the second half of 2023.
Experts interviewed by Kommersant say that the demand for financial leasing of mining equipment is growing on the crypto market. BitCluster, Intelion Data Systems and Chilkoot spoke about the implementation of such projects. Also, according to a Kommersant source, trial transactions were conducted by Transleasing. The total market volume, according to Chilkoot, will amount to about 1 billion rubles this year, and tens of billions of rubles next year.
Previously, with the help of leasing in Russia, cloud mining equipment was mainly purchased, said Roman Nekrasov, co-founder of the ENCRY Foundation. The main advantage of this option is the possibility of redemption, market participants point out. At BitCluster, the down payment starts at 20%, the lease term is up to three years, and the rate is about 12% per annum. The offer applies only to legal entities.
At Intelion Data Systems, the down payment starts at 35%, the term is 13-24 months, the rate is 10.2% per year. The service is available to both legal entities and individuals. Chilkoot cooperates “with classic leasing companies”, the rate is 20-25% appreciation for three years. To receive the equipment, the client needs to initially invest 10-30% of the cost.
BitCluster co-founder Sergey Arestov explained that “leasing leverage helps to multiply the purchase potential, thereby significantly increasing computing power.” Intelion Data Systems noted that with the growth of the market, it is possible not only to close the “shoulder” ahead of schedule, but also to receive additional profit.
At the same time, large leasing companies told Kommersant that such equipment is not yet financed “due to the uncertainty with state regulation of mining itself and, in general, the possibility of using crypto for Russian citizens.”
As Sergey Klyushnikov, CEO of VTB Leasing Group, notes, “mining equipment is a dangerous subject for financing.” Its cost can radically change in one direction or another depending on the situation on the cryptocurrency market, and the financial result of the activity of users of this equipment is unpredictable, the top manager explains. Raises doubts among the interlocutors of “Kommersant” and the liquidity of mining equipment in the secondary market.
Leasing of mining equipment has become actively offered on the market, because “many miners work on the edge of cost and try to save their equipment somewhere, they also offer mining farm maintenance,” Roman Nekrasov believes. At the same time, there is no overabundance of new energy-efficient equipment, there is an overabundance of obsolete equipment, the expert clarifies.
According to Mr. Nekrasov, “mining is still profitable in the Irkutsk region, but hardly anywhere in the Moscow region.” Market participants estimate the cost of bitcoin at the level of 630–745 thousand rubles, that is, $10–12 thousand, excluding the cost of purchasing equipment. At the same time, bitcoin quotes, according to coinmarketcap.com, are currently only $19.4 thousand, although in the spring they exceeded $40 thousand.
Market conditions are not in favor of virtual currencies against the backdrop of expectations of a tightening of the Fed’s monetary policy (see Kommersant of September 20). “The crypto winter is unlikely to end before the second half of 2023,” says Roman Nekrasov.
In addition, lawyers emphasize that mining is not regulated in Russia. As Mikhail Uspensky, a member of the expert council of the working group on the legislative regulation of cryptocurrencies of the State Duma, notes, if you read the law literally, then de jure mining is prohibited. “The miner receives cryptocurrency, and in Russia there is a direct and unambiguous ban on paying for works or services with crypto,” he explains.
The founder of LFCS Legal Support, Yuri Brisov, clarifies that mining equipment is produced legally, its purchase and balance is legal. However, he acknowledges that organizing a completely legal mining model is complex and resource-intensive, which is why miners regularly make requests for transparent legal regulation.
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