Industry committee  They call it “crypto mining”. We think the mining analogy is a good one. It is: Digital mining is what's happening, and this cryptocurrency—bitcoin, in this case—is being created as a result of this process.

Industry committee  It would be guesstimates. The larger companies are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure. They're generating profits, which they're paying taxes on. They're paying other forms of taxes as well. They're generating economic activity, which itself is generating taxes.

Industry committee  They make these businesses uncompetitive globally in Canada. They add a drag. It is effectively a hidden 5% to 15% tax on the businesses themselves that their competitors in other jurisdictions are not going to confront. I don't want to overstate the impact, but these are companies that are now considering how just the tabling of the legislation has had a chilling effect on investment decisions that these companies have to make to reinvest in their equipment and to grow their businesses.

Industry committee  I don't know that I would point to specific ideas about incentives. It's more a general perception that this is an industry that's worthy of support. What we're seeing now is this disjointed transactional treatment of the industry. Our coalition exists because of one of those incidents: The tabling of this change to GST purports to treat digital asset mining like some kind of obscure business that needs to be treated almost like a pariah within our economy.

Industry committee  It does consume a lot of energy, but if it's clean energy. It's not bad for the environment, and many industries consume a lot of energy. Canada has a decided advantage because we have an abundance of clean, renewable energy. This idea of a load that you can turn on and off is very important; it adds to the efficiency of the grid.

Industry committee  I would say, from our vantage point, having met advocates for the digital asset mining sector, it's as though you're confronting a major perception problem. There's a massive amount of education that has to happen for regulators and for decision-makers such as yourselves, and you're doing it in the context of a media portrayal of the industry that is just so negative these days.

Industry committee  Unfortunately, we're kind of at the stage where a lot of this is anecdotal and prospective. The digital asset mining industry is a part of the bigger blockchain story. We can talk about the kinds of economic contributions that those businesses have made and are planning to make in the Canadian economy in terms of jobs and investment, but to say what it is worth or what it will be worth is very difficult to pin down.

Industry committee  I'll pass this on to Mr. Morphy. Maybe he can talk a bit about that from Bitfarms' perspective.

Industry committee  We have created dozens and dozens—hundreds—of jobs across the country.

Industry committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you to the committee members for having me and my colleagues here to speak with you today. My name is Dan Brock. I'm a partner at the Canadian law firm Fasken. I'm appearing today as the lead advocate for the responsible Digital Asset Mining Coalition.