On Wednesday night Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk shocked the entire crypto community when he announced that his electric-car company was no longer going to accept Bitcoin payments amid energy concerns. The news sent the price of Bitcoin and other top cryptocurrencies crashing, with the flagship cryptocurrency plunging to $47,500.
It appears that Musk is not through with influencing the price of the market. In a recent tweet, the CEO clarified his stance on cryptocurrencies. According to Musk, he is still a strong believer in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. However, he is concerned about the increasing use of fossil fuels to power Bitcoin mining activities.
To be clear, I strongly believe in crypto, but it can’t drive a massive increase in fossil fuel use, especially coal— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 13, 2021
In another tweet, he proposed the implementation of a carbon tax that would introduce a monetary consequence for emitting greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. Musk claims that the Biden administration rejected his offer.
Musk has been accused severally of tampering with the crypto market. To an extent, it is common knowledge that Bitcoin mining consumes a lot of energy. Musk cannot deny not knowing this fact when Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) first announced that it was going to accept Bitcoin payments for its cars.
Haven't I told you Musk will inevitably turn into a great shitcoin shill? https://t.co/EV7R0xiRZ5— Joe007 alerts·groups·funds? Scam! (@J0E007) May 14, 2021
Soon after Musk reaffirmed his “strong belief” in crypto, his favorite meme coin DOGE, began rising again. The digital asset surged by over 23 percent. As of press time, DOGE was sitting on a 24-hour gain of approximately 29%, with a price tag of $0.5563.
Musk goes further to reveal that he was working with Dogecoin developers. Some have accused Musk of being a Doge whale who is simply manipulating the market to his favor.