Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk has expressed support for cryptocurrency, calling it “undeniably irreplaceable,” in the wake of China’s recent cryptocurrency crackdown.
“It is not possible to, I think destroy crypto, but governments can slow down its advancement,” Musk stated at the Code Conference in California on September 28, according to CNBC.
The decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies, according to the Tesla CEO, may pose a challenge to the Chinese government, which started a fresh crypto war on Friday.
“I believe cryptocurrency is fundamentally geared at diminishing the power of a centralized government,” Musk explained, before adding, “They don’t like that.” He also suggested that China’s recent crackdown on cryptocurrency is likely related to the country’s “major electrical generation concerns.”
“Electricity shortages in many places of China may be to blame for some of it. Because power consumption is higher than planned, many parts of South China are experiencing sporadic power outages right now […] Crypto mining could be a factor,” he speculated.
Despite the fact that Musk does not consider himself a “huge cryptocurrency specialist,” the tech billionaire emphasized that policymakers should not try to stifle bitcoin proliferation. When asked if the US government should be involved in crypto regulation, Musk said:
“I would say, ‘Do nothing.’”
Musk has established himself as a major crypto price influencer on Twitter, with numerous experts tying his tweets to big price changes for tokens such as Shiba Inu (SHIB), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Bitcoin (BTC).
Tesla’s CEO was harshly chastised in the crypto world after discontinuing Tesla’s BTC payment option in May 2021, ostensibly due to environmental worries about Bitcoin mining.
Musk previously sparked a wave of excitement in the cryptocurrency market when he announced a $1.5 billion Bitcoin purchase in February.