Tesla has suspended accepting bitcoin for car purchases, sending the price of the biggest cryptocurrency plummeting.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the decision on Twitter, saying “we are concerned about rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for Bitcoin mining and transactions, especially coal, which has the worst emissions of any fuel.”
Cryptocurrency is a good idea in many ways and Tesla believes it has a promising future, but this cannot come at the cost of the environment, according to the statement.
Tesla will not sell any of its own bitcoin holdings and plans to trade it once mining shifts to more sustainable energy sources.
Tesla is also looking at “other cryptocurrencies that use <1% of Bitcoin’s energy/transaction.”
Tesla & Bitcoin pic.twitter.com/YSswJmVZhP
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 12, 2021
The statement sent Bitcoin’s price down rapidly, currently at $51,542, down 7 percent from 24 hours ago. Dogecoin is also down 7.56 percent.
In an SEC filing in February, Tesla revealed that the company had purchased $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin and may invest more in the cryptocurrency or other cryptocurrencies in the future.
On March 24, Tesla’s US website began supporting consumers to purchase cars with Bitcoin.
Tesla’s support for cryptocurrencies has contributed to their price surges in recent months.
