BTC Guild says it may have to shut down due to NYDFS regulations

Mining Pool Mining Pool A mining pool is a group of cryptocurrency miners that look to combine their hash power and computing potential to increase the chance that they will earn mining rewards. Crypto miners are presented with choices, either working with others and splitting a higher probability reward among pool members, or going solo with a decreased chance for a bigger reward.With cryptos such as Bitcoin for example, it is simply not plausible for a normal person operating with their own computer to make a profit A mining pool is a group of cryptocurrency miners that look to combine their hash power and computing potential to increase the chance that they will earn mining rewards. Crypto miners are presented with choices, either working with others and splitting a higher probability reward among pool members, or going solo with a decreased chance for a bigger reward.With cryptos such as Bitcoin for example, it is simply not plausible for a normal person operating with their own computer to make a profit Read this Term operator BTC Guild says that if implemented, the proposed guidelines put forth by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) may force it to shut down. The only other alternative, it says, is to "operate illegally and hope they're ignored".

The announcement cites two reasons: (1) The proposed regulations require a pool to obtain personal information about all its users, not just those in the US. Since this is not feasible, it is impossible for them to legally operate in the US. (2) The costs of compliance will be prohibitively high, exceeding "the amount of money the pool has generated since inception."

Usually, the pool says, it guarantees a minimum of 3 months' notice before closure. However, this case would be exceptional with only 45 days. The regulations call for the cessation of operations prior to the new rules coming into effect, and NYDFS has given 45 days to review the proposed rules.

The announcement starts off by reminding users that the pool is not a bank, and therefore miners should make periodical withdrawals to reduce their risk of loss.

BTC Guild describes itself as "one of the oldest remaining mining pools". It typically commands about 5-10% of the total network Hash Rate Hash Rate A hash rate is the measure of a cryptocurrency miner’s performance and a key security metric. In the context of mining, the more hashing or computing power in a given network, the greater its security and its overall resistance to attackMining hashrate is a key security metric. The more hashing (computing) power in the network, the greater its security and its overall resistance to attack. Hash rate is also a measurement of the output of a device that is used to add transactions to a blockchain A hash rate is the measure of a cryptocurrency miner’s performance and a key security metric. In the context of mining, the more hashing or computing power in a given network, the greater its security and its overall resistance to attackMining hashrate is a key security metric. The more hashing (computing) power in the network, the greater its security and its overall resistance to attack. Hash rate is also a measurement of the output of a device that is used to add transactions to a blockchain Read this Term.