The South China Morning Post reported that local vendors of GPUs that were once in high demand by cryptocurrency miners, such as those using Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3080, RTX 3080 Ti, and RTX 3090, previously demanded up to triple their recommended retail prices.
For those looking to purchase an RTX 3080 in mainland China, budget about RMB 5,000 ($700). The same equipment cost them roughly RMB 8,000 ($1,100) three months ago, according to a local electronics retailer.
In the wake of China’s itcoin">Bitcoin crackdown, the costs of consumer GPUs made by well-known companies like Nvidia and AMD were also falling. Perhaps this has something to do with a recent report that indicates itcoin">Bitcoin mining revenue is about to reach an all-time low.
The Cyberspace Administration of China launched another attack in August of last year as part of Beijing’s campaign against online cryptocurrency trading, closing 12,000 accounts. For allegedly hosting “cryptocurrency marketing” materials, such as tutorials outlining how Chinese citizens can engage in cross-border transactions and advising Chinese readers on how to perform crypto mining in spite of the crackdown, about 51,000 posts were removed, and 105 websites were taken offline.
The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) launched a crackdown in 2021, but discussions centered on cryptocurrencies are still common on popular Chinese social media platforms.
