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RE: BTC: The Unsustainable Beast
I don't know... but if the energy cost of creating a Bitcoin increases, that should naturally increase the price of a Bitcoin. It's not a case of the price keeping up with the cost of energy... it's just the price of a bitcoin. I think the base energy cost is actually the main tangible thing 'backing' the Bitcoin price. People say it's not backed by anything, but it really is kind of backed by the electricity cost to create one.
Hashrate usually follows price though, not the other way around, and considering the magnitude of the speculative uptrend crypto has been in, it's rather surprising to see that mining activity has actually kept up. That is no small feat. It's really quite remarkable in my opinion. Who would have thought just a couple of years ago that Bitcoin mining would be consuming almost 4 billion USD in electricity today? How much higher and how much longer can this go on? I'm not the one to say, but I will say that sooner or later it hits an immovable wall, and probably sooner rather than later.
True, there may be some point when some kind of ceiling is hit. But I the hashrate will continue to grow for longer than we think possible, just like the price. I think we're creating the largest bubble the world has ever seen!
But, I do hold more altcoins than I do Bitcoin. The PoW energy consumption is part of the reason.