This appetite for electricity has drawn widespread criticism from celebrities such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk to government bodies such as China’s State Council and the U.S. Senate over Bitcoin’s impact on climate change. But while the electricity figures are alarmingly high, it’s important to note that bitcoin mining at most accounts for 1.29% of any single country’s energy consumption. Not to mention, Bitcoin is a complete financial system whose energy consumption can be measured and tracked, unlike the fiat system, which cannot be accurately measured and requires a range of additional layers to function, including ATMs, card machines, bank branches, security vehicles, storage facilities and huge data centers. Bitcoinity By early 2013, the leading cryptocurrency had recovered from a prolonged bearish episode and rose above $1,000, albeit only briefly. But with the infamous Mt Gox hack, China announcing its first ban on crypto and other situations, it took a further four years for the BTC price to return to above $1,000 again. Once that level was passed, however, bitcoin’s price continued to surge dramatically throughout 2017 until BTC peaked at its previous long-standing all-time high of $19,850.
Bitcoin Beach had transformed itself for the occasion. The streets were littered with food stands with big plastic signs emblazoned with the Bitcoin symbol. A DJ played techno and pop songs, including a cryptocurrency-themed version of “Despacito,” the lyrics “Tengo que bailar contigo hoy” (I have to dance with you today) replaced with “Tengo que comprar un bitcoin hoy” (I have to buy a bitcoin today). Live Bitcoin Chart in EUR Cryptocurrency Trading