SBI Holdings, a Tokyo-based online financial services company will shut down its services in Siberia, Russia due to uncertainty regarding the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and a dip in profitability due to the current market downturn.

The pullout decision was taken primarily because of the current geopolitical uncertainty that is fueling the Russia-Ukraine war and a dip in cryptocurrency mining returns because of the current market downtrend. However, the company did not state when they would complete their withdrawal.

This development comes after SBI Holdings suspended it’s mining operations in Serbia after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. SBI Holdings has no other crypto businesses in Russia other than the mining rig in Serbia. It’s banking subsidiary in Moscow – SBI Bank LLC – will continue operations.

Siberia was emerging as one of the best cryptocurrency mining hotspots in the world due to low energy costs. This mining trend especially picked up after China banned crypto mining in the country in May 2021. Crypto miners now account for over 2% of Russia’s energy consumption according to estimates provided by Russia’s Ministry of Industry in May 2022.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is especially keen on Russia becoming a mining hub while saying the country can make use of surplus electricity and well-trained personnel. Russian lawmakers also approved a bill draft in June that provides an exemption of value-added tax to “digital asset issuers” and their “information systems operators.”

However, the war seems to have scattered Russia’s dreams of becoming a key international mining hub. The country has been hit with numerous economic sanctions which have forced mining companies to pull out from the country. Several other high-profile companies like Visa, Mastercard and PayPal have left the country in the wake of these sanctions.

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