Tesla CEO Elon Musk said while Bitcoin mining is steadily becoming more environmentally friendly through the use of renewable energy, he is not yet sure that it’s enough for Tesla to resume accepting the cryptocurrency as payment for purchases.
Fast facts
- Speaking at the virtual Bitcoin event “The ₿ Word” with fellow panelists Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Ark Invest’s Cathie Wood, Musk said Tesla would “most likely” consider accepting crypto transactions again, but would need to do more due diligence to ensure the percentage of renewable energy used in the mining practice was at least 50% or more.
- He said: “It looks like Bitcoin is shifting a lot more towards renewables and a bunch of the heavy-duty coal plants that were unequivocally being used have been shut down, especially in China. I want to do a little more diligence to confirm that the percentage of renewable energy usage is most likely at or above 50% and that there is a trend towards increasing that number. If so, Tesla will resume accepting Bitcoin.”
- The electric car manufacturer stopped accepting Bitcoin as payment for its vehicles in May, citing environmental concerns over the crypto mining process. This move, along with continued crackdowns on mining in China, triggered a market crash and is considered to be one of the key drivers of the end of Bitcoin’s historic bull run it had experienced in the first half of 2021.
- In the same conference, Musk also revealed that aside from Tesla’s investments in Bitcoin, his aerospace tech company, SpaceX, has also invested in BTC. He also shared that he personally holds Ethereum and Dogecoin — the latter should come as no surprise following his longstanding campaign of supporting Dogecoin and its spinoffs.
- Musk, the world’s second-richest man after Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, did not disclose the exact amounts that he or his companies have invested in any cryptocurrency.
