In recent days, the Kingdom of Bhutan has caused quite a stir in the Bitcoin world, and probably beyond.

Bhutan is sitting on over 13,000 BTC with a population of 780K inhabitants.

This puts Bhutan in the world's Top 5 countries with the most BTC. Bhutan ranks behind America, China, the UK, and Ukraine. But unlike these countries, Bhutan didn't obtain this Bitcoin via foreclosures.

Bhutan has consciously chosen to enter the Bitcoin revolution through the front door.

Bhutan is even a fascinating case study, as Bhutan obtained this Bitcoin via mining. Thanks to its geographical location, Bhutan has enormous hydroelectric potential (up to 30,000 MW). And with its current capacity, it produces more than 300% of the electricity needs of its 780,000 inhabitants.

The question Bhutan asked itself is one that many countries will ask themselves in the future: what to do with this stranded energy?

After all, this surplus energy cannot be consumed. We have to do something with it to avoid wasting it. So Bhutan is selling it to India, but it has also decided to enter the world of Bitcoin mining in 2020.

At the time, this didn't cause much of a stir. Michael J. Saylor was just entering the world of Bitcoin with MicroStrategy. The spotlight was elsewhere.

Bhutan has built several sites dedicated to Bitcoin mining. These sites are mainly powered by electricity generated by hydroelectric sites. At the same time, the national electricity company also supplies power to a mining operation deployed by an external service provider, the firm Bitdeer.

Isolated in the Himalayas, Bhutan quickly realized that Bitcoin was an opportunity not to be missed. Bitcoin mining is a boon to the kingdom's financial health. The sale of part of its war chest at the end of 2023, for example, helped finance a 50% pay rise for the country's civil servants.

Bitcoin is a game-changer when it is adopted in a way that serves the people. And this is the case in Bhutan!