The most popular cryptocurrency, bitcoin (BTC), recovered some of its sharp losses, fueled by Tesla‘s supremo Elon Musk as the car manufacturer said it has suspended vehicle purchases using BTC and is looking at other cryptoassets.
BTC plunged from almost USD 55,000 to USD 47,600, before recovering higher again and fluctuating around USD 50,000. At 03:36 UTC, it trades at USD 49,958 and is down by 13% in a day. Other coins from the top 10 club have also followed a similar path and are now down by 8%-18% in the past 24 hours.
“We are concerned about rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transaction especially coal, which was the worst emissions of any fuel,” according to a screenshot, shared by Musk on Twitter.
It added the company still believes cryptocurrency is a good idea and has a promising future, “but this cannot come at great cost to the environment.”
Tesla said it won’t be selling any BTC it holds and intends to use it for transactions “as soon as mining transitions to more sustainable energy.”
However, in April, Musk agreed that BTC “incentivizes renewable energy.”
Some commenters speculate that this decision to suspend BTC payments might be related to subsidies Tesla is receiving from the US government.
“We are also looking at other cryptocurrencies that use <1% of Bitcoin’s energy/transaction,” they concluded. This week, Musk asked his Twitter followers, whether the company should start accepting dogecoin (DOGE).
Tesla started accepting BTC in March this year.
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Reactions:
Ironic because no incremental energy is used in a #bitcoin transaction. The energy is used to secure the crypto-asset network, and the net impact on fossil fuel consumption over time will be negative, all things considered.
— Michael Saylor (@michael_saylor) May 12, 2021
Uh oh. Did someone get yelled at by the government who pays you massive subsidies so you can stay in business each quarter?
— 🟩Preston Pysh🟩 (@PrestonPysh) May 12, 2021
Are you going to stop accepting US Dollars next which use even more energy? pic.twitter.com/NwlrMfjak9
— Dan Held (@danheld) May 12, 2021
I refuse to believe one of the smartest people on Earth – @elonmusk – JUST realized Bitcoin uses electricity.… https://t.co/b9ZcMLUyuG
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Learn more:
– Tesla Sends Bullish Bitcoin Signal To Global Corporates
– Engineer Elon Musk Says Bitcoin ‘Is Less Dumb’ Than Cash
– Bitcoin Mining Difficulty is Set for an ATH As Miners Send Bullish Signs
– Proof-Of-Bitcoin Needed As Critics & Competitors Unite To Play Climate Card
– A Closer Look at the Environmental Impact of Bitcoin Mining
– Bitcoin Mining in 2021: Growth, Consolidation, Renewables, and Regulation
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