The Guardian released a short video yesterday where Alex Hern discusses his wrong views about the matter. He notes correctly that the Bitcoin network uses a lot of electricity. He also notes correctly that the percentage of renewable in the mix is large compared to other industries. He then somehow proceeds to tell people theyContinue reading “Bitcoin Energy Use Problem”
Category Archives: Bitcoin Law
FinCEN Rule Proposal
FinCEN just published a proposal for a new rule. It requires regulated exchanges to keep records on who owns the address some bitcoin is first moved to from the exchange for transactions over $10,000 in value. The EU has floated similar ideas in Recital 9 of the 2018 money laundering Directive. It reads: “The anonymityContinue reading “FinCEN Rule Proposal”
Muttitt on OPEC
Greg Muttitt has published a chapter on “What role for OPEC in the last generation of oil” in the 2020 “Handbook of OPEC and the Global Energy Order” which is available behind a paywall of GBP 175. Muttitt kindly mailed me his contribution, so I was able to read it before buying the book (IContinue reading “Muttitt on OPEC”
JK Rowling Does not Need to Understand Bitcoin
She just said she does not understand Bitcoin on Twitter and asked people to explain. And got lots of answers in a short time. I don’t understand Bitcoin either. At least not at the expert level some people who are concentrating full time on it. But that does not matter much. The unique thing aboutContinue reading “JK Rowling Does not Need to Understand Bitcoin”
European Green Deal and Fossil Fuel Antitrust Exemption
I just wrote an article with that title. Published in my public Dropbox folder here. The European Green Deal is the main policy of the new EU Commission. It wants to make Europe the first climate neutral continent. And there is a sense of urgency. The Commissioner in charge compared the situation with a largeContinue reading “European Green Deal and Fossil Fuel Antitrust Exemption”
DLD 2020 Bitcoin Energy Panel
There was some informed comment on how bitcoin mining helps with solving the climate emergency, as opposed to being a part of the problem. The conference for this panel was the “DLD Munich”, which means “Digital Life Design”. It was founded in 2005, is backed by a large German media company, and attracts a lotContinue reading “DLD 2020 Bitcoin Energy Panel”
Happy Halving Day!
Today Bitcoin reaches 75% of all bitcoins ever created, which means that the mining rewards will be cut in half from 25 to 12.5 bitcoins. The last time (and first time) that happened was on November 12, 2012, when 50% of bitcoins were created and the reward dropped from 50 to 25. For the occasion,Continue reading “Happy Halving Day!”
Not Worried About Bitcoin Transaction Fees Increasing
Roger Ver pointed to a graph showing that Bitcoin transaction fees are rising and said that this chart should worry everyone. I for one am not worried about this point. If people are paying transaction fees, that means that they attach value to those transactions. If people are paying rising prices for bitcoins, as theyContinue reading “Not Worried About Bitcoin Transaction Fees Increasing”
Member of European Parliament Antanas Gouga on Bitcoin
Antanas Gouga is elected from Lithuania and has founded multiple companies. He appeals to his colleagues to learn more about Bitcoin (always a good idea). He also notes that Bitcoin is still very small, so there is no urgent need for regulation right now, a good point I agree with. Another point I just madeContinue reading “Member of European Parliament Antanas Gouga on Bitcoin”
Clear and Present Damage vs. Hypothetical and Future Damage
When discussing block size, one question is what the potential downside of each solution is. The existing limit was introduced in 2010 to deal with the scenario of a malicious miner building an oversized block to damage the network. At the time, there was no danger of legitimate use cases testing that limit. Six yearsContinue reading “Clear and Present Damage vs. Hypothetical and Future Damage”
