The material geographies of Bitfury in Georgia: Integrating cryptoasset firms into global financial networks

Wyeth, Ryan; Rella, Ludovico; Atkins, Ed

Abstract

Cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, have garnered significant attention in scholarship and beyond. Geographical work on cryptocurrencies has focussed on how their energy demand interacts with local communities and economies. Less is said about the organization of cryptoasset firms and their associated demands. This paper illuminates the complex geographies of one such firm, Bitfury Group, to investigate the global and national forms and structures such companies take and the factors encouraging them to concentrate operations in certain areas. To investigate the latter, we adopt the case study of Bitfury’s operations in Georgia, a South-Caucasian country where its presence is significant. We adapt Haberly et al.’s analytical framework to explore Bitfury’s geographical dimensions. We highlight how cheap electricity, regulatory and taxation regimes, personal encounters and personalities, and the materialities of hardware and energy-saving technology define these geographies and illuminate how Bitfury actively curates advantageous regulatory spaces. We encourage future work exploring Blockchain and Bitcoin technologies to understand the companies involved as simultaneously material and virtual, and as centrepieces in global networks interweaving production and finance.

Citation

Wyeth, R., Rella, L., & Atkins, E. (2024). The material geographies of Bitfury in Georgia: Integrating cryptoasset firms into global financial networks. Environment and Planning A, 56(3), 816-832. https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518x231211789

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 30, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Nov 30, 2023
• Publication Date: 2024-05
• Deposit Date: Feb 13, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 13, 2024
• Journal: Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space
• Print ISSN: 0308-518X
• Electronic ISSN: 1472-3409
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 56
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 816-832
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518x231211789
• Keywords: Georgia, global financial networks, Cryptocurrencies, Bitfury, Bitcoin
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2254188