We have heard a lot of debates where Bitcoin is put in the discussion of money and how it can potentially change money as we know it. However, a lot of people prefer to only stick to facts and disregard the allegations.
On a side note, there have been a lot of fingers pointed and a lot of claims on Bitcoin and its electricity consumption. And while no one knows if these claims are actually exaggerated and completely missing the point, we are deciding to stick to the facts below.
Bitcoin Network Consumes A Lot Of Energy: But How Much, Really?
So, the first fact is that Bitcoin’s energy consumption is not a big concern. The entire network uses transactions that are broadcast to nodes which relay the information to mining pools. This requires a lot of electricity which can be a big waste. However…..
A very recent study claims that Bitcoin network is consuming 8.27 terawatt hours of energy per year at the current prices. Surprisingly for many, this is far less than many US data centers and is definitely way less than the US energy consumption.
Printing Bills And Coins Is More Expensive Than Electricity Powering The Bitcoin Network
The most interesting thing with the entire false claims regarding bitcoin is the data that can be seen in a Bloomberg article – where it is evident that Bitcoin consumes less electricity than the printing of coins and bills.
In numbers, the physical money that we use today require 11 terawatt hours per year to produce. Gold mining also requires a lot of terawatt hours – 132 to be precise. Bitcoin, with its 8.27 terawatt hours annually, is far less than printing money.
So…What does the future of Bitcoin hold as a whole?
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