Share this article
Sweden, EU Discussed Bitcoin Proof-of-Work Ban: Report
Documents released by a German site suggest concern about the environmental impact of the crypto mining method.
Updated Apr 10, 2024, 2:07 a.m. Published Apr 21, 2022, 11:29 a.m.
Swedish financial regulators and the European Commission have discussed the possibility of banning the proof-of-work method that underpins bitcoin because of its impact on the environment, according to documents published by netzpolitik.org, a German website.
The revelation comes after lawmakers at the European Parliament came close to passing restrictions on the energy-hungry bitcoin mining method, which some characterized as a bitcoin ban.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Documents apparently released under the EU's freedom-of-information laws show that at a meeting in November, Swedish financial and environmental regulators and the European Commission's digital-policy arm discussed banning trading in crypto assets such as bitcoin that use the proof-of-work technique.
An unnamed attendee said that bitcoin should be encouraged to move toward a more environmentally friendly alternative such as proof-of-stake, as rivals such as Ethereum have done, and didn't "see [the] need to 'protect' the bitcoin community."
Parts of the document have been redacted to protect individual privacy or due to "ongoing decision-making process," suggesting that policy is still being developed on the topic. Swedish officials have previously made it clear that they want to ban proof-of-work for environmental reasons.
A separate document suggested discussions were still ongoing in February and included German environment ministry officials.
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
Crypto CEOs Join U.S. CFTC's Innovation Council to Steer Market Developments
The chief executives of firms such as Gemini and Kraken will pitch in on U.S. policy efforts through the council's future, public discussions.
What to know:
- In her final days atop the agency, Commodity Futures Trading Commission Acting Chairman Caroline Pham announced her CEO Innovation Council, replete with crypto executives.
- The names include the chief executives from Gemini, Kraken, Polymarket, Bitnomial and several others.
- The CFTC is expected to get its permanent chairman very soon when the Senate votes on the confirmation of Mike Selig, President Donald Trump's nominee.
Top Stories
