Petition · past parliament · HM Treasury
Ban the mining of and trade in "proof of work" cryptocurrencies within the UK
Closed
786 signatures
What the petition asks
Many popular cryptocurrencies use "proof of work" to secure transactions. Proof of work is incredibly wasteful: current estimates suggest that it currently uses around 0.5% of the world's electricity. We cannot afford this waste if we want to reach net zero.
Many computers used to mine cryptocurrencies are specialised, can't be repurposed and rapidly become obsolete. This generates a lot of electronic waste. Recent estimates have concluded that mining operations consume 4% of specialised semiconductor manufacturing and 20% of all graphics card sales. A ban on proof of work based cryptocurrencies, would not be a full ban on cryptocurrencies but would instead incentivise a move to more environmentally friendly mining algorithms such as proof of stake.
Timeline
| 1 Dec 2021 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 1 Jun 2022 | Closed to new signatures |
Key facts
Signatures
786
Status
Closed
Department
HM Treasury
Opened
1 Dec 2021
Closed
1 Jun 2022
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.