FTX, BitMEX Commit to Becoming Carbon Neutral

Key Takeaways

• FTX announced its plans to go carbon neutral last night, starting with a $1 million donation to carbon offsetting organizations.
• BitMEX made a similar pledge to offset its emissions a few hours after FTX posted the update.
• The crypto space has faced scrutiny from concerned environmentalists once again this week after Elon Musk announced that Tesla would halt Bitcoin payments due to the asset’s environmental impact.

FTX and BitMEX are going carbon neutral. The exchanges have pledged to donate fees to offset emissions. 

Exchanges Pledge to go Carbon Neutral 

FTX and BitMEX have committed to becoming carbon neutral. 

FTX posted a note confirming its plans to offset its emissions late last night. The exchange, run by prominent crypto trader Sam Bankman-Fried, said it would start by donating $1 million towards offset the blockchain resources it uses. “Together we can make the world a better place, and it doesn’t mean we have to give up what we believe in,” Bankman-Fried tweeted. 

BitMEX followed FTX’s lead within a few hours of the update, penning a blog post noting that there had been “huge scrutiny on cryptocurrencies and energy consumption recently – with wildly divergent views and accuracy of information.” 

The exchange has confirmed that it will be taking several steps towards achieving carbon neutrality, starting with paying fees to offset emissions caused by withdrawals. The firm has promised to donate $0.0026 for every $1 of blockchain fees a customer pays to take out their funds, based on calculations Bankman-Fried posted on Twitter. According to the blog post, it’s also researching organizations to partner with. 

The post concluded by encouraging other crypto companies to commit to the same pledge, adding: 

“Carbon offsetting is not the only answer to concerns relating to the environmental footprint of crypto, but it’s certainly a good start. We believe that crypto is a huge force for good in the world, but the industry has to come together and tackle challenges that risk sidetracking our positive intentions.” 

Crypto’s environmental impact has been a particularly hot topic over the last week after Elon Musk announced that Tesla would halt Bitcoin payments. Musk went on to criticize the impact of mining the asset, sending the market into freefall. The currency’s fans responded by pointing out that 75% of Bitcoin mining comes from renewable sources, though that hasn’t been enough to change the overarching narrative just yet. 

Meanwhile, Ethereum published a blog post claiming that moving to Proof-of-Stake would cut emissions by 99.95%. The second blockchain currently uses an energy-intensive Proof-of-Work consensus algorithm, similar to the one that Bitcoin uses. Various other cryptocurrency chains like Fantom and Polygon already use Proof-of-Stake. If environmental concerns over Proof-of-Work escalate, Proof-of-Stake networks could start to take more of the spotlight in the future. 

Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author of this feature owned ETH, ETH2X-FLI, MATIC, and several other cryptocurrencies. 

The information on or accessed through this website is obtained from independent sources we believe to be accurate and reliable, but Decentral Media, Inc. makes no representation or warranty as to the timeliness, completeness, or accuracy of any information on or accessed through this website. Decentral Media, Inc. is not an investment advisor. We do not give personalized investment advice or other financial advice. The information on this website is subject to change without notice. Some or all of the information on this website may become outdated, or it may be or become incomplete or inaccurate. We may, but are not obligated to, update any outdated, incomplete, or inaccurate information.

You should never make an investment decision on an ICO, IEO, or other investment based on the information on this website, and you should never interpret or otherwise rely on any of the information on this website as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you consult a licensed investment advisor or other qualified financial professional if you are seeking investment advice on an ICO, IEO, or other investment. We do not accept compensation in any form for analyzing or reporting on any ICO, IEO, cryptocurrency, currency, tokenized sales, securities, or commodities.

See full terms and conditions.

Source: Read Full Article