HiTechEdge

Tag: Elon Musk

  • Bitcoin Plummets on China and Elon Musk Concerns

    Bitcoin Plummets on China and Elon Musk Concerns

    Bitcoin plummeted to almost $30,000 amid another crackdown by China and Elon Musk saying Tesla would no longer accept it as payment.

    Bitcoin hit its high in April, coming in at more than $63,000. Tesla announced it would allow individuals to use the crypto to purchase cars, and multiple companies started embracing it. Last week, however, Musk announced Tesla would no longer accept the currency for purchase, due in large part to the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining.

    China has now signaled another major crackdown on the cryptocurrency, according to International Business Times. 

    Three state-backed industry associations said “cryptocurrency prices have skyrocketed and plummeted, and cryptocurrency trading speculation activities have rebounded.”

    The crypto’s volatility “seriously violate people’s asset safety and disrupt normal economic and financial order”, the People’s Bank of China said in a statement posted to social media.

    The end result has been been a major drop in Bitcoin’s price, although it appears to be rebounding at the time of writing.

    Author holds a very, very (almost infinitesimally) small amount of Bitcoin that in no way influenced this article.

  • Bitcoin’s Tesla Misfortune May Be Dogecoin’s Gain

    Bitcoin’s Tesla Misfortune May Be Dogecoin’s Gain

    On the heels of Tesla no longer accepting Bitcoin as payment, Elon Musk has said he is working with Dogecoin’s developers.

    Elon Musk surprised the crypto market Wednesday when he announced Tesla would no longer accept Bitcoin as payment, just weeks after the company had announced it would. Musk cited Bitcoin mining’s carbon footprint as the reason, something the cryptocurrency is increasingly being criticized for.

    Despite Musk’s announcement, he clarified he is still a strong supporter of cryptocurrencies in general.

    In addition, Musk says he is working with Dogecoin’s developers to help it be more efficient, possibly avoiding the environmental impact Bitcoin has become known for.

    Needless to say, Dogecoin rebounded on Musk’s tweet, and continues its transition from meme to legitimate crypto.

    *Author holds a very small amount of Dogecoin that in no way influenced this article.

  • Tesla’s Bitcoin Reversal Wiped $365 Billion From Crypto Market

    Tesla’s Bitcoin Reversal Wiped $365 Billion From Crypto Market

    Tesla’s decision to stop accepting Bitcoin for payment led to some $365 billion of value being wiped from the crypto market.

    Tesla made the decision in March to accept Bitcoin as payment for vehicle purchases. The move was not surprising, given CEO Elon Musk’s love of crypto. Yesterday, however, the company reversed its plans, with Musk citing the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining.

    The decision already appears to have had a major impact on the crypto market, according to CNBC, with some $365.85 billion wiped from the market after Tesla’s announcement.

    In particular, Bitcoin, ether and XRP were all significantly lower than their pre-announcement levels.

  • Tesla Suspends Purchases Using Bitcoin

    Tesla Suspends Purchases Using Bitcoin

    Tesla will no longer accept Bitcoin as payment for Teslas, reversing a policy only weeks after it went into effect.

    Elon Musk is a big proponent of cryptocurrency, so it’s no surprise that both of his companies, Tesla and SpaceX, have taken an unconventional approach as well. SpaceX recently announced it had accepted Dogecoin as payment for carrying a satellite on its upcoming mission to the Moon and Tesla was accepting Bitcoin as payment for vehicle purchases.

    Unfortunately, an often overlooked byproduct of cryptocurrency mining is the impact it has on the environment. In fact, as far back as 2018, it was estimated that every $1 of Bitcoin that was generated was responsible for $49 of health and climate damage in the US.

    Musk cited the environmental impact as the primary reason for Tesla’s change of direction. He made the statement via Twitter.

    Tesla has suspended vehicle purchases using Bitcoin. We are concerned about rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions, especially coal, which has the worst emissions of any fuel.

    Cryptocurrency is a good idea on many levels and we believe it has a promising future, but this cannot come at great cost to the environment.

    Tesla will not be selling any Bitcoin and we intend to use it for transactions as soon as mining transitions to more sustainable energy. We are also looking at other cryptocurrencies that use <1% of Bitcoin’s energy/transaction.

    *Author holds a very small amount of Dogecoin that in no way influenced this article.

  • SpaceX Accepts Dogecoin for Upcoming Mission

    SpaceX Accepts Dogecoin for Upcoming Mission

    In its continuing journey from meme to legitimate cryptocurrency, dogecoin will be used to pay for an upcoming SpaceX mission.

    Although it was originally started as a joke, dogecoin is gaining acceptance as a legitimate cryptocurrency. In early May it surged to a $70 billion market cap, making it the fourth most valuable crypto. Meanwhile, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban announced the NBA team would accept it as payment.

    Elon Musk has arguably been the biggest support of dogecoin, and his SpaceX company has now accepted it as payment for an upcoming mission to the Moon, called “DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon.” Canadian company Geometric Energy Corporation has paid SpaceX to transport a 40kg satellite. The transaction was made exclusively with dogecoin.

    “Having officially transacted with DOGE for a deal of this magnitude, Geometric Energy Corporation and SpaceX have solidified DOGE as a unit of account for lunar business in the space sector,” said Geometric Energy’s Chief Executive Officer Samuel Reid.

    “This mission will demonstrate the application of cryptocurrency beyond Earth orbit and set the foundation for interplanetary commerce,” said SpaceX Vice President of Commercial Sales Tom Ochinero. “We’re excited to launch DOGE-1 to the Moon!”

    *Author holds a very small amount of Dogecoin that in no way influenced this article.