Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, recently attended a podcast in which he briefly discussed his views on Bitcoin, stating that he is “neither here nor there” on the digital currency.
Elon Musk finally talks about crypto
Elon Musk has become quite a popular internet personality over the last several years. He has participated in various podcasts, and become a big part of the meme community on the internet. However, one area where his views were only assumed but never really confirmed, is the cryptocurrency sector.
Musk has posted several tweets mentioning cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and even Dogecoin, for which he said it’s his favorite concept. However, he never admitted to being a crypto user or investor, and he never really explained his stance, until now.
Recently, Musk has appeared in an episode of ‘Third Row Tesla Podcast,’ where he discussed various subjects, and cryptocurrency eventually emerged as a topic as well. His hosts asked him what he thought about Bitcoin directly, and musk gave a cryptic answer, saying that he is “neither here nor there,” (1.33.00hrs)
Musk voices his true thoughts of Bitcoin
Fortunately, this time, he did not leave it at that, and he actually elaborated on his views of crypto, revealing that he likes the concept and thinks that it is ‘clever.’ However, he also has concerns regarding their role in making illegal transactions.
He said,
There are transactions that are not within the balance of the law. And there are, obviously, many laws in different countries. And, normally, cash is used for these transactions. But, in order for illegal transactions to occur, cash must also be used for legal transactions. You need an illegal-to-legal bridge. That’s where crypto comes in.
Musk admitted that crypto isn’t entirely ‘dark’ — hinting at its use on the dark web — since then nobody would be able to buy ‘normal stuff.’ He also noted that there are places that no longer accept cash, indicating that there certainly are opportunities to use crypto, legally.
Musk concluded by saying that he could see crypto as a replacement for cash, but not as a ‘primary database,’ as he put it.
Bitcoin’s dark past still does not let go
Of course, Bitcoin’s role in illegal transactions, and especially on the dark web, is no secret. In fact, cryptos have spent more time in the shadows than they have in the light of day. It is worth remembering that they only became ‘big’ in 2017, when BTC price started to surge, thus causing the biggest bull run that was seen in the entire crypto history, to this day.
Before that, cryptos were used by tech geeks and online criminals, and there were numerous reports of large amounts of BTC being seized after the authorities made a move against dark web operations.
Even so, Musk pointed out that he is not trying to be judgemental of crypto, and in fact, he thinks that there are a lot of illegal things that should not be illegal, in his opinion.
With that, the crypto world has finally received Elon Musk’s official views on crypto and Bitcoin. In other words, despite his crypto ‘Easter eggs’ on Twitter, Musk seems to believe that the fate of crypto has yet to be decided, and especially their role in the future of finance.
Do you agree with his views, or do you think that crypto will take over after all? Join the discussion in the comments below, and let us know.
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