Cryptocurrency Mining Rig Launched By Japanese Internet Giant GMO

GMO Internet, an internet service firm based in Japan, has launched a digital currency mining rig which comes equipped with 7 nanometer chips. Known as GMO Miner B2, the mining rig will begin shipping before the close of October this year though pre-orders began this month. According to GMO Internet the mining rig will be manufactured in Taiwan though it is designed in its home country. Miner B2 will be marketed by GMO-Z.com Switzerland, a sales unit of GMO Internet which is based in Switzerland.

With a 7 nanometer chip the mining rig will possess more hashing power but also reduce power consumption at least theoretically. According to GMO Internet the power consumption rate of the Miner B2 will be one-fifty-fifth cheaper than rival devices. The hash rate of Miner B2 will be 24TH/s while the power consumption will be 1,950W translating to 81W for every 1TH/s. The market leader currently is Antminer S9 which is manufactured by Bitmain and it provides a hash rate of 14TH/s while its power consumption is 1,300W.

GMO Internet first entered the cryptocurrency mining business last year in December when it put up mining centers which are located in Scandinavia. The choice of location was influenced by lower electricity prices as well as lower cooling costs. Currently GMO Internet boasts of more than 20,000 machines which are in operation.

In the past few months GMO Internet has been diversifying into cryptocurrencies. Late last month GMO Internet unveiled a cryptocurrency wallet for Apple’s mobile devices. The virtual currency wallet will hold digital currencies to start with – Ripple (XRP), Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), and Ethereum (ETH).

Additionally the Japanese internet giant also announced the introduction of an application known as CryptoChips which is designed with a view of rewarding players of video games after they achieve particular goals. Support will be initially offered for bitcoin (BTC) and would be implemented in Whimsical War, a real-time battle game which was developed by GMO Internet. According to the Japanese internet giant the in-game rewards will be offered starting this year in August. 

In the cryptocurrency space other related ventures that GMO Internet operates include a digital coin mining unitwhich was started last year in September and a digital currency exchange known as GMO Coin. The Japanese internet giant’s crypto exchange went global earlier this year when it entered the U.K. market. GMO Internet also pays a part of its employees’ salaries in bitcoin.