BTC Guild says it may have to shut down due to NYDFS regulations
Mining Pool Mining Pool A mining pool is a group of cryptocurrency miners that look to combine their hash power and computing potential to increase the chance that they will earn mining rewards. Crypto miners are presented with choices, either working with others and splitting a higher probability reward among pool members, or going solo with a decreased chance for a bigger reward.With cryptos such as Bitcoin for example, it is simply not plausible for a normal person operating with their own computer to make a profit mining. Many newer miners opt for altcoins instead, as this is much more feasible given hashing requirements.Of note, a mining pool can never exceed 51% of the overall hashing power of any network, as this would present other issues entirely. Who Uses Mining Pools?Mining pools are an ideal solution for cryptocurrency miners who may not have access to large amounts of expensive equipment. Mining crypto takes a huge amount of computing power and electricity, with hardware and other fixed costs becoming a prohibitory factor for most. And yet, without a huge amount of hash power, it is unlikely that a miner will be chosen by a cryptocurrency network to confirm a block of transaction data. Therefore, it is also unlikely that the miner will earn any mining rewards. This changes if a miner joins a mining pool. A network is more likely to choose the pool to confirm transaction data because the pool has a higher amount of hash power. Mining rewards are distributed throughout the mining pool in accordance with the amount of hash power that each member contributes to the pool. A mining pool is a group of cryptocurrency miners that look to combine their hash power and computing potential to increase the chance that they will earn mining rewards. Crypto miners are presented with choices, either working with others and splitting a higher probability reward among pool members, or going solo with a decreased chance for a bigger reward.With cryptos such as Bitcoin for example, it is simply not plausible for a normal person operating with their own computer to make a profit mining. Many newer miners opt for altcoins instead, as this is much more feasible given hashing requirements.Of note, a mining pool can never exceed 51% of the overall hashing power of any network, as this would present other issues entirely. Who Uses Mining Pools?Mining pools are an ideal solution for cryptocurrency miners who may not have access to large amounts of expensive equipment. Mining crypto takes a huge amount of computing power and electricity, with hardware and other fixed costs becoming a prohibitory factor for most. And yet, without a huge amount of hash power, it is unlikely that a miner will be chosen by a cryptocurrency network to confirm a block of transaction data. Therefore, it is also unlikely that the miner will earn any mining rewards. This changes if a miner joins a mining pool. A network is more likely to choose the pool to confirm transaction data because the pool has a higher amount of hash power. Mining rewards are distributed throughout the mining pool in accordance with the amount of hash power that each member contributes to the pool. Read this Term operator BTC Guild says that if implemented, the proposed guidelines put forth by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) may force it to shut down. The only other alternative, it says, is to "operate illegally and hope they're ignored".
The announcement cites two reasons: (1) The proposed regulations require a pool to obtain personal information about all its users, not just those in the US. Since this is not feasible, it is impossible for them to legally operate in the US. (2) The costs of compliance will be prohibitively high, exceeding "the amount of money the pool has generated since inception."
Usually, the pool says, it guarantees a minimum of 3 months' notice before closure. However, this case would be exceptional with only 45 days. The regulations call for the cessation of operations prior to the new rules coming into effect, and NYDFS has given 45 days to review the proposed rules.
The announcement starts off by reminding users that the pool is not a bank, and therefore miners should make periodical withdrawals to reduce their risk of loss.
Mining Pool Mining Pool A mining pool is a group of cryptocurrency miners that look to combine their hash power and computing potential to increase the chance that they will earn mining rewards. Crypto miners are presented with choices, either working with others and splitting a higher probability reward among pool members, or going solo with a decreased chance for a bigger reward.With cryptos such as Bitcoin for example, it is simply not plausible for a normal person operating with their own computer to make a profit mining. Many newer miners opt for altcoins instead, as this is much more feasible given hashing requirements.Of note, a mining pool can never exceed 51% of the overall hashing power of any network, as this would present other issues entirely. Who Uses Mining Pools?Mining pools are an ideal solution for cryptocurrency miners who may not have access to large amounts of expensive equipment. Mining crypto takes a huge amount of computing power and electricity, with hardware and other fixed costs becoming a prohibitory factor for most. And yet, without a huge amount of hash power, it is unlikely that a miner will be chosen by a cryptocurrency network to confirm a block of transaction data. Therefore, it is also unlikely that the miner will earn any mining rewards. This changes if a miner joins a mining pool. A network is more likely to choose the pool to confirm transaction data because the pool has a higher amount of hash power. Mining rewards are distributed throughout the mining pool in accordance with the amount of hash power that each member contributes to the pool. A mining pool is a group of cryptocurrency miners that look to combine their hash power and computing potential to increase the chance that they will earn mining rewards. Crypto miners are presented with choices, either working with others and splitting a higher probability reward among pool members, or going solo with a decreased chance for a bigger reward.With cryptos such as Bitcoin for example, it is simply not plausible for a normal person operating with their own computer to make a profit mining. Many newer miners opt for altcoins instead, as this is much more feasible given hashing requirements.Of note, a mining pool can never exceed 51% of the overall hashing power of any network, as this would present other issues entirely. Who Uses Mining Pools?Mining pools are an ideal solution for cryptocurrency miners who may not have access to large amounts of expensive equipment. Mining crypto takes a huge amount of computing power and electricity, with hardware and other fixed costs becoming a prohibitory factor for most. And yet, without a huge amount of hash power, it is unlikely that a miner will be chosen by a cryptocurrency network to confirm a block of transaction data. Therefore, it is also unlikely that the miner will earn any mining rewards. This changes if a miner joins a mining pool. A network is more likely to choose the pool to confirm transaction data because the pool has a higher amount of hash power. Mining rewards are distributed throughout the mining pool in accordance with the amount of hash power that each member contributes to the pool. Read this Term operator BTC Guild says that if implemented, the proposed guidelines put forth by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) may force it to shut down. The only other alternative, it says, is to "operate illegally and hope they're ignored".
The announcement cites two reasons: (1) The proposed regulations require a pool to obtain personal information about all its users, not just those in the US. Since this is not feasible, it is impossible for them to legally operate in the US. (2) The costs of compliance will be prohibitively high, exceeding "the amount of money the pool has generated since inception."
Usually, the pool says, it guarantees a minimum of 3 months' notice before closure. However, this case would be exceptional with only 45 days. The regulations call for the cessation of operations prior to the new rules coming into effect, and NYDFS has given 45 days to review the proposed rules.
The announcement starts off by reminding users that the pool is not a bank, and therefore miners should make periodical withdrawals to reduce their risk of loss.