Asic Jungle has launched a beta version of what it calls “the first-ever mining hardware marketplace” for cryptocurrency mining hardware. The company's CEO Artem Bespaloff told Cointelegraph that he has created a trusted platform for second-hand mining equipment that operates without any middlemen:
"[It's] the first and only online marketplace where buyers can interact directly with sellers through the platform and not have to use any brokerage services or Telegram channels (I call them 'sketchy' Telegram channels) because all sorts of things go on there. And we decided to create this ecosystem where buyers and sellers deal together between themselves."
The company's solution to these problems is a two-sided marketplace that connects ASIC buyers and sellers in a secure and transparent environment. According to Bespaloff, ASIC brokers currently charge high premiums that are taking advantage of the market's lack of price discovery mechanisms. He believes that these brokers create information asymmetry by withholding pertinent information.
Bespaloff said that Asic Jungle upholds a number of security features to ensure that transactions happen in a trusted environment, including an emphasis on AML compliance. As the Canada-based company will be serving customers from all over the world, they intend to comply with both local laws and regulations and the compliance laws of the United States.
Although mining equipment becomes progressively less efficient with the passage of time, Bespaloff assured that there is plenty of demand for second-hand equipment in places with very cheap or free energy sources, like some areas in Canada and Venezuela — though the residents of the latter may be excluded from participation in an effort to comply with U.S. sanctions.
Both Bitcoin and Ethereum (ETH) have recently experienced record-setting hashrate increases, indicating there will be no lack of interest in mining equipment in the near future.