Exclusive: the impact of halving on the environmental friendliness of Bitcoin
In the next couple of days, an important and long-awaited event for the entire crypto industry will take place - the Bitcoin halving. Experts told the editors whether it will affect the environmental friendliness of the main digital coin.
In the next couple of days, an important and long-awaited event for the entire crypto industry will take place - the Bitcoin halving. Experts told the editors whether it will affect the environmental friendliness of the main digital coin.
Pocket PR Cryptocurrency Marketing Director Oksana Belyanskaya noted: against the backdrop of halving, the reward for miners will be halved. This may lead to increased competition among industry participants, which will affect the environmental friendliness of mining. There is more and more talk that Bitcoin needs to switch to the Proof-of-Stake consensus algorithm. However, this is unlikely to happen in the near future. The transition may affect the decentralization of BTC. The fact is that PoS involves staking coins, and large investors can get an advantage in mining. Perhaps miners will be able to come up with alternative ways to obtain Bitcoin. For example, such as burning garbage. This sounds like a joke at the moment, but could be used to some extent in the future.
According to Dmitry Noskov, an expert at the StormGain crypto exchange, a drop in value reduces the attractiveness of mining. However, it is unlikely that digital asset miners will massively switch to alternative sources of electricity in the near future. Therefore, everything will remain as is, while Bitcoin will not cease to be a non-environmental asset.
CEO and founder of Headframe Artem Shtanov largely shares the opinion of the previous expert. Technically, the halving will not make Bitcoin greener, since it will not affect the energy consumption of mining devices. On the other hand, this event may encourage miners to upgrade their equipment. In addition, miners are primarily driven by favorable prices for electricity, which often comes from renewable sources.
Vadim Petrov, a member of the Russian Lawyers Association and the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation, noted that mining consumes a very significant amount of electricity. Against the backdrop of the halving, the rewards for crypto asset miners will be reduced, and it may become unprofitable for them to maintain the operation of equipment with significant energy consumption, especially in regions with high prices. This could encourage industry participants to switch to more energy efficient devices using renewable sources. The halving itself does not make Bitcoin greener, but it could trigger fundamental shifts in the industry itself.
The founder of the investment company SharesPro Denis Astafiev emphasized that halving has nothing to do with the environmental friendliness of Bitcoin mining. Everything depends primarily on profit. If it makes financial sense for miners to switch to more environmentally friendly mining methods, they will do so. Further development of the situation largely depends on government regulation.
OXLY Development Director Danatar Atadzhanov believes that, despite the increase in energy costs during mining, Bitcoin may in the future become more environmentally friendly after the halving. This is due to the fact that miners will be forced to use the most energy-efficient mining equipment to reduce their costs. The industry will also become influenced by the environmental agenda, and the share of more environmentally friendly methods of cryptocurrency mining will grow. The final result will depend on many factors, including the availability and cost of alternative energy sources, as well as government environmental policy.
Smart Blockchain founder Alex Reinhardt noted that halving will not affect the environmental friendliness of the mining industry. Of course, miners are trying to increase the share of green energy in their activities in order to meet modern requirements. For example, many large funds refuse to invest in projects that do not comply with ESG principles.
Pocket PR Cryptocurrency Marketing Director Oksana Belyanskaya noted: against the backdrop of halving, the reward for miners will be halved. This may lead to increased competition among industry participants, which will affect the environmental friendliness of mining. There is more and more talk that Bitcoin needs to switch to the Proof-of-Stake consensus algorithm. However, this is unlikely to happen in the near future. The transition may affect the decentralization of BTC. The fact is that PoS involves staking coins, and large investors can get an advantage in mining. Perhaps miners will be able to come up with alternative ways to obtain Bitcoin. For example, such as burning garbage. This sounds like a joke at the moment, but could be used to some extent in the future.
According to Dmitry Noskov, an expert at the StormGain crypto exchange, a drop in value reduces the attractiveness of mining. However, it is unlikely that digital asset miners will massively switch to alternative sources of electricity in the near future. Therefore, everything will remain as is, while Bitcoin will not cease to be a non-environmental asset.
CEO and founder of Headframe Artem Shtanov largely shares the opinion of the previous expert. Technically, the halving will not make Bitcoin greener, since it will not affect the energy consumption of mining devices. On the other hand, this event may encourage miners to upgrade their equipment. In addition, miners are primarily driven by favorable prices for electricity, which often comes from renewable sources.
Vadim Petrov, a member of the Russian Lawyers Association and the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation, noted that mining consumes a very significant amount of electricity. Against the backdrop of the halving, the rewards for crypto asset miners will be reduced, and it may become unprofitable for them to maintain the operation of equipment with significant energy consumption, especially in regions with high prices. This could encourage industry participants to switch to more energy efficient devices using renewable sources. The halving itself does not make Bitcoin greener, but it could trigger fundamental shifts in the industry itself.
The founder of the investment company SharesPro Denis Astafiev emphasized that halving has nothing to do with the environmental friendliness of Bitcoin mining. Everything depends primarily on profit. If it makes financial sense for miners to switch to more environmentally friendly mining methods, they will do so. Further development of the situation largely depends on government regulation.
OXLY Development Director Danatar Atadzhanov believes that, despite the increase in energy costs during mining, Bitcoin may in the future become more environmentally friendly after the halving. This is due to the fact that miners will be forced to use the most energy-efficient mining equipment to reduce their costs. The industry will also become influenced by the environmental agenda, and the share of more environmentally friendly methods of cryptocurrency mining will grow. The final result will depend on many factors, including the availability and cost of alternative energy sources, as well as government environmental policy.
Smart Blockchain founder Alex Reinhardt noted that halving will not affect the environmental friendliness of the mining industry. Of course, miners are trying to increase the share of green energy in their activities in order to meet modern requirements. For example, many large funds refuse to invest in projects that do not comply with ESG principles.