So, what is Bitcoin?

If you have been living under a rock and have no idea what Bitcoin is, it is a digital currency which is used online to make anonymous purchases. Thanks to the coin being pseudonymous- which means that they aren’t linked to people but to Bitcoin addresses or virtual wallets.

It came around in 2008 and since then it’s value has been up and down. Constantly increasing and decreasing, until recently when it skyrocketed, making some people an absolutely ridiculous amount of money.

This year the cryptocurrency has taken the world by storm. It isn’t like any other trend out there because this one is changing lives due to its enormous value. In the last week alone bitcoin has risen around £2000 in value, resulting in 1 coin being worth over £11,000. Which is a remarkable amount of money for something which you can’t actually see?

The Reality May Look Different

But Bitcoin may be hiding a dark reality which may anger people who don’t have lots of wealth and the people who care for the future of our planet. How is this going to happen you say? Well production and mining of the currency are done using supercomputers which are still using old fashion energy methods and they are a very limited and costly resource, especially when the amount of power used to run the machines per transaction, is the same amount of energy used to power 9 homes for 24 hours each, and now that the value has rocketed, faster computers will keep being installed at rapid rates will only ensure that this number increases.

Eric Holthaus, a humanitarian and current meteorologist has recently come forward and said that in a few months time, the amount of energy needed will overtake the amount of energy available, as well as stating “By July 2019, the bitcoin network will require more electricity than the entire United States currently uses. By February 2020, it will use as much electricity as the entire world does today. This is an unsustainable trajectory. It simply can’t continue.”

Is mining Bitcoin worth causing damage to our planet for? have you had any interaction with cryptocurrency? If so don’t be afraid to tell us your opinion and stories on our social media accounts.