Billionaires launch campaign against bitcoin over energy consumption fears

Several large organisations as well as a famous US billionaire have launched a campaign against bitcoin.

Several large organisations as well as a famous US billionaire have launched a campaign against bitcoin.

The top-ranked cryptocurrency has drawn ire from environmental activists because of the eye-watering amount of energy it takes up during its mining process.

Bitcoin mining burns up 91 terawatt-hours of electricity annually, which is more energy than a small country like Finland with a population of 5.5 million uses in an entire year.

Crypto billionaire Chris Larsen and several climate activist groups including Greenpeace and Environmental Working Group are calling for a major overhaul to the way bitcoin is mined.

The software code that bitcoin uses, called “proof of work”, is the reason it takes up so much energy.

Other cryptocurrencies have switched to “proof-of-stake” which reportedly cuts energy consumption by as much as 99 per cent.

Now Mr Larson and various environmental groups are launching their “Change the Code, Not the Climate” campaign angling for bitcoin to do the same.

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Last year, I published an op-ed calling for Bitcoin to consider a move away from PoW to a low energy validation method. Today, I’d like to share an update on how my thinking has evolved on this front. https://t.co/8G3MKmiHYK

— Chris Larsen (@chrislarsensf) March 29, 2022

Campaign organisers have paid for advertising in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Marketwatch, Politico, Facebook and several other publications to drive their point home.

Mr Larsen founded Ripple XRP, a rival to bitcoin, and is now demanding a major change to BTC’s coding.

“In this world, with all these smart people, there has got to be a better solution,” Mr Larsen said, according to The Guardian.

The crux of the issue is that bitcoin’s code currently “incentivises maximum energy use”, he added.

He warned in a previous interview that bitcoin would consume as much power as Japan in five years’ time without intervention.

Ethereum has reportedly already switched to proof-of-stake which has reduced its energy output considerably.

Last year, Elon Musk’s company Tesla suspended its decision to accept bitcoin as payment over concerns about the blockchain’s energy consumption.

Bitcoin is currently in the red zone over its energy consumption.

Michael Brune, former executive director of the Sierra Club, is spearheading the campaign against bitcoin.

“We are in this campaign for the long haul, but we are hoping – particularly since bitcoin is now being financed by entities and individuals who care about climate change – that we can compel leadership to agree that this is a problem that needs to be addressed,” Mr Brune said.

“Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, PayPal, Venmo, Fidelity — there are lots of companies we anticipate will be helpful to this effort.”

At time of writing, bitcoin was down slightly, declining 0.3 per cent in the past 24 hours.