Anders Larson (U.S. Bitcoin Corp) on strategic miner decision making (EP.270)

Anders Larson, head of strategic finance at U.S. Bitcoin Corp, joins us to talk about how miners make decisions and allocate capital. In this episode:  The Wharton class of 2018 Are Bitcoin miners clogging up the chip supply chain? Why Bitcoin miners are 'tier 2' customers at foundries The scale of US BTC operations in terms of hashrate Why US BTC has been so quiet historically How US BTC targets renewable energy Which renewables are easiest to find Is there any truth to the story of Bitcoin improving the economics of renewables? Why ASIC depreciation is slowing, and how that affects the viability of different energy sources The relationship between Bitcoin's carbon intensity and ASIC depreciation period Can ASICs last for 5 years? How does US BTC think about uptime on their units? Why lower uptime means that you have cheaper power due to demand response How US BTC thinks about hashrate growth and why they are more conservative than their competitors Why Chinese hashrate is not completely eliminated The state of affairs in Kazakhstan How Anders thinks about political risk in mining How policy logic informs selective mining bans and mining subsidies How Anders sees miners vertically integrating with energy firms How Anders thinks about proposed state bitcoin mining bans in places like NY Why mining bans in the West are often counterproductive The relationship between energy consumption and civilizational progress How Anders thinks about the energy cost debate Whether the CBECI hashrate distribution estimates are reliable Why the US having a large share of hashrate isn't something to be concerned about How mining could become a states rights issue Does US BTC project fee growth in their models? Sponsor notes: Compass Mining is the world's first and largest online marketplace for bitcoin mining hardware, hosting, and ASIC reselling. Start mining your own bitcoin by visiting compassmining.io This episode supported by Public.com. Start investing with as little as $1 and get a free slice of stock up to $50 when you join Public.com today. Visit public.com/onthebrink to download the app and sign up.