Southeast Asian Bitcoin mining equipment companies faced a crucial deadline of midnight on April 9. Christopher Beshore, the president of Sealion Cargo, a Canadian freight forwarding company, described this period as unforgettable due to an unexpected announcement from U.S. President Donald Trump regarding reciprocal tariffs.
The tariffs imposed included 36% on Thailand, 32% on Indonesia, and 24% on Malaysia — countries that have become vital in the assembly and distribution of cryptocurrency mining machines. This announcement presented significant financial challenges for U.S. buyers of these essential mining machines unless Beshore and his team managed to ship the equipment before the tariffs took effect.
In a swift response to this looming crisis, Sealion took immediate action, chartering five planes and coordinating numerous trucks and barges to transport an impressive $330 million worth of equipment from the three Southeast Asian nations to the United States. Beshore noted that the potential tariff risk could exceed $80 million.
This tariff threat posed particular difficulties for the cryptocurrency mining sector, as there are very few machines manufactured in the U.S. capable of the high-performance computing required to remain competitive in this dynamic industry..