Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who is also a prominent figure in the crypto industry, has repeatedly expressed his optimism about cryptos and stated that digital currencies would one day replace traditional money. Recently, speaking on the ARK Invest ‘FYI — For Your Innovation’ podcast, Musk has said that paper money is going away and soon it will be a thing of the past.
It’s finally here! Thank you to @elonmusk for joining @CathieDWood and @TashaARK to talk about #Tesla and #autonomous. FYI | EP11 is live. https://t.co/CSEpP5F6CL pic.twitter.com/2odRWt9u8s
— ARK Invest (@ARKInvest) February 19, 2019
Saying that ‘paper money is going away’, Musk explained that digital currencies are a far better way of transferring value as opposed to traditional money:
“Crypto[currency] is a far better way to transfer value than pieces of paper, that’s for sure.”
Recently, we reported that Elon Musk unveiled his favorite cryptocurrency. Dogecoin, Litecoin-derived cryptocurrency that initially started as a joke, published a tweet calling for voting on the next CEO of the decentralized project, and Musk was chosen as the best potential CEO. In response, Musk wrote that Dogecoin may be his favorite crypto.
Earlier, Elon Musk said the technology behind Bitcoin is ‘quite brilliant’ and ‘it seems like there is some merit to Ethereum and maybe some of the others.’ This opinion is shared by a billionaire Tim Draper and Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey, a well-known Bitcoin proponent.
In March, Dorsey said:
“The world ultimately will have a single currency, the internet will have a single currency. I personally believe that it will be bitcoin. It will happen probably over 10 years, but it could go faster.”
Some support Musk’s view and believe that ‘cash is no longer on a pedestal’. According to one Twitter user, a number of countries are already going cashless. The user mentioned Sweden which is planning to introduce its own national cryptocurrency in 2021 and proceed to go fully cashless by 2023.
Weaknesses Behind Cryptos
The biggest issue in the crypto space is security and privacy. Some believe that completely getting rid of cash, governments can get involved with the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies and compromise privacy. Others think that cryptos are absolutely secure and their mass adoption will foster better and more efficient financial systems with smoother payment systems.
Another drawback behind cryptos is the reason why Musk’s companies do not get involved with them. According to Tesla founder, digital currencies are not a good use of the company’s resources, that’s why Tesla is just trying to accelerate the advancement of sustainable energy. Moreover, the high energy intensity of cryptos makes mining sophisticated.
“I think one of the downsides of crypto is that it, computationally, it is like quite energy intensive. It is very energy intensive to create the incremental bitcoin at this point.”
Despite their weaknesses, cryptos are popular and their adoption is increasing. That’s why there are quite enough chances for them to replace fiat money. Whether this happens or not, we will only see in a couple of years.
