In Malaysia, electricity theft has increased by 300% due to miners.

The number of documented facts of illegal connections to Malaysia's power grids for mining has increased from 610 in 2018 to 2397 in 2024, according to TNB data.

Since January 2020 until December 2024, employees of the energy company annually identified an average of more than 2000 cases of electricity theft related to underground mining. During the same period, the average annual number of complaints about accidents caused by the overload of power lines due to illegal connections of mining equipment reached 1699 — an average of 340 per month.

Energy companies said that the increase in electricity theft cases is explained by the fact that, amid the popularity of cryptocurrencies, underground miners are trying to use subsidized electricity for cryptocurrency mining through fake or bypassed meters. This costs TNB hundreds of millions of Malaysian ringgits, energy companies complain.

TNB has called on the authorities of Malaysia to tighten penalties for electricity theft. Currently, the punishment includes fines of up to $212,000 or up to 10 years in prison.

Earlier, the Central Bank of Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia, stated that it would delve deeper into the study of asset tokenization, but it does not intend to recognize cryptocurrencies as legal tender.