News

Lebanese Crypto Miners Are Fighting For Survival

To mine cryptocurrencies, miners need two essential things: suitable mining hardware and the electricity necessary to power it.

Published

5 years ago

August 4, 2021

Joanna Melki

lebanese crypto miners are fighting for survival

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Cryptocurrency mining used to give many people in Lebanon hope that a life void of financial anxiety was within their reach. Now, this hope is quickly turning into disappointment amid the electricity shortage crisis in the country. To mine valuable cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, crypto miners need two essential things: suitable mining hardware and a reliable source of electricity necessary to power it.

The first requirement alone is difficult to meet these days because GPUs (Graphics Processing Units), which most smaller miners and many large-scale miners rely on, are either unavailable or ridiculously expensive — and not just in Lebanon.

The second requirement, however, is something that has been making many crypto miners in Lebanon rethink their strategy. “Before the electricity crisis, each GPU used to mine $10-$20 worth of Bitcoin every four hours,” said Alaa Ayash, the co-owner of a gaming-turned-mining lounge in Mar Elias, Beirut. “Now they mine about $1-$5, almost a quarter of what they used to.” he added.

In an effort to keep their mining rigs running 24×7, some miners have started producing their own electricity using diesel generators, but obtaining enough fuel without paying an arm and a leg for it is becoming difficult every day, that’s if it can be obtained at all.

“One gallon (20 liters) of diesel used to cost around 30,000 Lebanese pounds. Now it costs somewhere between 100,000 pounds and 150,000 pounds in the black market, if not more,” explained Ali Mortada, a Syrian janitor responsible for several large buildings.

Also Read: Bitcoin In Lebanon: Everything You Need To Know

Of course, diesel generators are the exact opposite of environmentally friendly. In fact, diesel engine exhaust is classified as carcinogenic to humans because it’s linked to an increased risk of lung cancer. Several countries in Europe and South America are currently looking into cleaner and more sustainable energy solutions to power their equipment in efforts to continue mining in an eco-friendly manner.

The only thing that could realistically help Lebanese crypto miners in the short term is a substantial increase of Bitcoin’s price, and alternative cryptocurrencies along with it, but the current bear market doesn’t make this seem like a realistic possibility.

News

A Three-Clinic Network Bets Dubai Is Ready For Longevity Medicine

Longevium has enlisted nearly 100 clinicians and created an AI platform in a bid to sell biological-age tracking as a medicine, not a wellness service.

Published

2 days ago

July 13, 2026

Dana Saadeh

a three-clinic network bets dubai is ready for longevity medicine

Dubai has been busily creating the scaffolding for a longevity industry, including a dedicated regulatory authority and a health market deep enough to sustain it. Now the clinics are arriving.

Longevium, a longevity clinic network, has opened three locations across the city: a flagship at Triple Seven Mall on Jumeirah 3, and branches in Jumeirah Lake Towers and Jumeirah Village Circle. Together they house a multidisciplinary team of nearly 100 physicians and specialists offering what the company bills as “a measurable medical system for longevity”.

longevity dubai clinic launch

The pitch is that longevity medicine should look less like a wellness menu and more like continuous clinical care. Each patient’s biological age assessment, laboratory results, body composition, cardiovascular risk factors, metabolic markers, and lifestyle data feed into a single profile, with a proprietary AI platform helping physicians track progress and adjust protocols against the patient’s own biomarkers.

“Healthy aging must be approached clinically through diagnostics, biomarkers, physician supervision, longitudinal tracking, and protocols tailored to the individual,” said Dr. Ksenia Butova, Longevium’s founder and CEO. “Our goal is to help patients understand their health trajectory before disease develops, and then actively change that trajectory”.

The treatment list spans peptide-based protocols, exosome therapies, stem cell approaches, GLP-1 metabolic optimization, hormone balance programs, cardiovascular prevention, and regenerative aesthetics — a model built for the entrepreneurs, executives, and international patients the clinic says want measurable results rather than generic wellness. A signature offering, Longevity Day, compresses biomarker testing, ultrasound and vascular imaging, specialist consultations, IV therapy, and a personalized optimization roadmap into a single three-hour visit.

Also Read: Dubai Certifies The World’s First Purpose-Built Air Taxi Vertiport

“Here, longevity, biotechnology, AI, prevention, and regenerative medicine are converging into a single ecosystem,” said Butova. “This is why Longevium was built in Dubai, and why we believe the UAE can become a global reference point for longevity medicine”.

The emirate established the Dubai Longevity Authority in 2026 to oversee its longevity, wellness, and advanced health sectors, and the Dubai Health Authority reported insured beneficiaries exceeding 4.9 million in 2025, up around 6.5%, with insurance claims reaching approximately 49.6 million, up around 13.5%.