Bitmain has become the latest high profile cryptocurrency business to venture into the Turkish market, with something completely different – an actual, physical Bitcoin mining shop.
The Bitcoin mining shop is touted to debut in Istanbul as the country continues to witness an increasing interest in cryptocurrency businesses.
Bitcoin mining shop Istanbul just the first
Bitmain will operate its’ Bitcoin mining shop through its official distributor Phoenix Store which also serves the MENA region. Phoenix Store opened its first Bitmain store in St. Regis within Istanbul. The firm also serves as the distributor for cold wallets, including Trezor, Cool Wallet, and Ledger.
Phoenix Store CEO Phil Harvey explained the motivation behind the partnership with Bitmain. According to Harvey:
“As Phoenix Store, we are happy to step into Turkey with Bitmain. Turkey is among the countries that show the most interest in cryptocurrencies. This interest of Turkish investors has been one of the factors that pushed us to the Turkish market. As the official distributor of Bitmain, we will offer the industry’s most advanced Antminer devices and cold wallets that secure crypto assets to Turkish investors. The crypto money market is developing, in this sense, we think that Turkish investors will focus on crypto money investments.” –
Phil Harvey explaining the motivation behind the move
Two weeks after a 15% increase in electricity prices in Turkey, a new store selling professional mining equipment has opened its doors in Istanbul. But opening a mining equipment shop in a country with costly electricity seems counterintuitive.
But Phoenix Store, Bitmain’s sales partner in the Middle East did the math before opening its second store within the region. Phoenix Store CEO Phil Harvey explained that the company’s primary goal with the Istanbul store is to educate Turkey’s crypto-friendly population about crypto mining. Then, customers can purchase mining equipment and hosting services that would operate in Canada, the United States or Russia.
How crypto businesses are venturing into Turkish market?
Bitmain’s venture into Turkey might be viewed as a strategic move to attract miners who are closing shops in China. In recent weeks, China has increased its crackdown on cryptocurrency miners, with operators moving to other countries, including Kyrgyzstan.
Furthermore, Bitmain’s Turkish store comes barely a week after blockchain solution developer Pundi X also rolled out its services in Istanbul.
Pundi X notes that it targets businesses and it offers its services in collaboration with platform-as-a-solution company OVO Dijital. Pundi X aims to facilitate convenient in-store cryptocurrency exchange by setting up physical cryptocurrency exchange spots.
The development follows weeks of uncertainty regarding the country’s crypto regulations. On April 16, Turkey’s central bank announced legislation to ban cryptocurrencies as a payment method citing possible “irrevocable” damage and significant transaction risks.
With China’s sustained clampdown on crypto businesses, it does not come as a surprise that Bitmain is considering other international markets. However, the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey implemented a ban on cryptocurrencies back in April despite the growing interest in digital assets from Turkish investors.
After Dubai and Istanbul, Phoenix only plans to open a Bitcoin mining shop in London. “We won’t expand any further for the stores outside of those three locations,”
