Elon Musk says Tesla will eventually allow car buyers to pay in Bitcoin again

After pausing purchases with Bitcoin earlier this year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk reiterated on Wednesday that the electric vehicle maker may start allowing car buyers to pay with the cryptocurrency once the tech exec is more comfortable with its energy usage.

‘It looks like Bitcoin is shifting a lot more toward renewables and a bunch of the heavy-duty coal plants that were being used…have been shut down, especially in China,’ Musk, 50, said on Wednesday at The B-Word conference, a cryptocurrency event that included Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey and Ark Invest CEO/CIO Cathie Wood.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Wednesday the electric vehicle maker may allow car buyers to pay with Bitcoin once he is more comfortable with its energy usage. Musk wants to confirm the percentage of renewable energy is near or higher than 50 percent and the trend is increasing

Musk added that he wants to confirm the percentage of renewable energy is near or higher than 50 percent and if the trend is increasing, ‘Tesla will most likely resume accepting Bitcoin.’ 

During the lengthy conversation, Musk also confirmed that in addition to owning shares of the companies he has founded – Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink and The Boring Company – he also owns Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Ethereum.

Musk confirmed that he owns Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Ethereum. The price of Bitcoin rose nearly 8 percent to over $32,000 on back of the news, but was more recently trading at $31,678.71

Musk confirmed that he owns Bitcoin, Dogecoin and Ethereum. The price of Bitcoin rose nearly 8 percent to over $32,000 on back of the news, but was more recently trading at $31,678.71

The price of Bitcoin rose nearly 8 percent to over $32,000 on back of the news, but was more recently trading at $31,678.71 late Wednesday, according to Coindesk.

Ethereum also gained following the disclosure, gaining nearly 12 percent. More recently, it was up almost 8 percent to $1,939.18 a coin. 

Ethereum also gained following the disclosure, gaining nearly 12 percent. More recently, it was up almost 8 percent to $1,939.18 a coin

Ethereum also gained following the disclosure, gaining nearly 12 percent. More recently, it was up almost 8 percent to $1,939.18 a coin

THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF BITCOIN 

Earlier this year, billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates highlighted the negative impact mining Bitcoin has on the environment.

‘Bitcoin uses more electricity per transaction than any other method known to mankind,’ Gates said, speaking to the The New York Times. ‘It’s not a great climate thing.’

The cryptocurrency is ‘mined’ by high-powered computers that continuously solve computational math puzzles, the complexity of which means the processors require huge amounts of energy. 

Currently fossil fuels, through connection to national grids, are the primary source of power for many of these mining farms.  

A 2018 study published in Nature found huge farms of computers used to mine Bitcoin could produce enough greenhouse gases to raise global temperatures 3.6°F (2°C) in less than three decades. 

Studies have shown that the annual carbon emissions from the electricity generated to mine and process the cryptocurrency is equal to the amount emitted by whole countries, including New Zealand and Argentina. 

There are calls, and some efforts, to switch to full renewable power generation for these facilities. 

Musk also said that SpaceX owns Bitcoin, but did not disclose how much of the cryptocurrency the space exploration company owns. 

Like other cryptocurrencies including Ethereum and the aforementioned dogecoin, bitcoin is not yet widely accepted for commerce in major economies, hampered by its volatility and relatively costly and slow processing times.

During Wednesday’s talk, Musk said that ‘bitcoin by itself simply can not scale to replace the monetary system of the world at the base layer. But with a second layer, it’s possible, depending upon how that’s implemented.’

Musk’s comments are a reiteration of what he said in June, when the world’s second-richest man tweeted that Tesla would start taking Bitcoin payments for cars when miners can ensure ‘reasonable clean energy usage.’

‘When there’s confirmation of reasonable (~50%) clean energy usage by miners with positive future trend, Tesla will resume allowing Bitcoin transactions,’ Musk tweeted on June 13.

Musk had announced in May that Tesla would no longer accept bitcoin for car purchases, citing long-brewing environmental concerns for a swift reversal in the company’s position on the cryptocurrency.  

Musk had tweeted in May that Tesla ‘will not be selling any bitcoin’ and ‘has not sold any bitcoin.’

The tech exec took issue with the vast computing power required to process bitcoin transactions and in posted messages appeared to lament a breakup with bitcoin.

Tesla shares are down roughly 30 percent since it disclosed in February that it had purchased $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin.  

Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, was launched back in 2009.  

In May, Tesla said it would no longer accept Bitcoin for purchases, citing environmental concerns In February, Tesla disclosed that it had purchased $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin

In May, Tesla said it would no longer accept Bitcoin for purchases, citing environmental concerns In February, Tesla disclosed that it had purchased $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin

The problem with bitcoin is the energy involved in mining new coins and verifying existing value, according to billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

It uses more electricity per transaction than any other method or currency known to humanity due to the way it is mined by high-powered computers.

The machines continuously solve math puzzles that require fast, expensive processors that use huge amounts of energy to run and keep cool.

These farms are often connected to the electricity grid, and in most countries fossil fuels, especially coal, are the main source of energy for these national grids.

A 2018 study published in Nature found huge farms of computers used to mine Bitcoin could produce enough greenhouse gases to raise global temperatures 3.6°F (2°C) in less than three decades.

Studies have shown that the annual carbon emissions from the electricity generated to mine and process the cryptocurrency is equal to the amount emitted by whole countries, including New Zealand and Argentina.

The main cost of sourcing new bitcoins is in the cost of electricity.

In the earliest days of Bitcoin, a miner could earn 50 BTC every few minutes, but the more bitcoin are uncovered, the harder it is to find them, creating a scarcity.

Today a dedicated $2,000 (£1,419) bitcoin miner will generate about $8 (£5.68) in bitcoin revenue per day, not including the cost of electricity.

WHAT IS A BITCOIN? A LOOK AT THE DIGITAL CURRENCY

What is a Bitcoin?   

Bitcoin is what is referred to  as a ‘crypto-currency.’ 

It is the internet’s version of money – a unique pieces of digital property that can be transferred from one person to another.

Bitcoins are generated by using an open-source computer program to solve complex math problems. This process is known as mining.  

Each Bitcoin has it’s own unique fingerprint and is defined by a public address and a private key – or strings of numbers and letters that give each a specific identity.

They are also characterized by their position in a public database of all Bitcoin transactions known as the blockchain. 

The blockchain is maintained by a distributed network of computers around the world.

Because Bitcoins allow people to trade money without a third party getting involved, they have become popular with libertarians as well as technophiles, speculators — and criminals.

Where do Bitcoins come from?

People create Bitcoins through mining.

Mining is the process of solving complex math problems using computers running Bitcoin software.

These mining puzzles get increasingly harder as more Bitcoins enter circulation.

The rewards are cut in half at regular intervals due to a deliberate slowdown in the rate at which new Bitcoins enter circulation. 

Who’s behind the currency?

Bitcoin was launched in 2009 by a person or group of people operating under the name Satoshi Nakamoto and then adopted by a small clutch of enthusiasts.

Nakamoto dropped off the map as Bitcoin began to attract widespread attention, but proponents say that doesn’t matter: the currency obeys its own, internal logic.

Dr Craig Wright was suspected as the creator following a report by Wired last year and he has now confirmed his identity as the cryptocurrency’s founder.  

What’s a bitcoin worth?

Like any other currency, Bitcoins are only worth as much as you and your counterpart want them to be. 

Bitcoins are lines of computer code that are digitally signed each time they travel from one owner to the next. Physical coin used as an illustration

Bitcoins are lines of computer code that are digitally signed each time they travel from one owner to the next. Physical coin used as an illustration

In its early days, boosters swapped Bitcoins back and forth for minor favours or just as a game. 

One website even gave them away for free. 

As the market matured, the value of each Bitcoin grew.

Is the currency widely used?

That’s debatable.

Businesses ranging from blogging platform WordPress to retailer Overstock have jumped on the Bitcoin bandwagon amid a flurry of media coverage, but it’s not clear whether the currency has really taken off. 

On the one hand, leading Bitcoin payment processor BitPay works with more than 20,000 businesses – roughly five times more than it did last year. 

On the other, the total number of Bitcoin transactions has stayed roughly constant at between 60,000 and 70,000 per day over the same period, according to Bitcoin wallet site blockchain.info.

Is Bitcoin particularly vulnerable to counterfeiting?

The Bitcoin network works by harnessing individuals’ greed for the collective good. 

A network of tech-savvy users called miners keep the system honest by pouring their computing power into a blockchain, a global running tally of every bitcoin transaction. 

The blockchain prevents rogues from spending the same bitcoin twice, and the miners are rewarded for their efforts by being gifted with the occasional Bitcoin. 

As long as miners keep the blockchain secure, counterfeiting shouldn’t be an issue.