The reports of bitcoin environmental damage are garbage

I have a background in electricity, from when I was an investment banker. I worked in a Natural Resources & Power group for about 8 years and modelled electricity systems and assets in the UK and China in the context of acquisitions, capital raisings, restructurings, and regulatory submissions. One of the banks that I worked for was HSBC, in their emerging markets M&A team, and I know China well. The models, created in groups, were used to support perhaps $4–5 billion equivalent of transactions, including public tender offers, acquisition finance, syndicated loans, and bond sales. The only time I went back to my old business school for course work was for modules offered by Decision Sciences, one of which was an in-depth power systems dynamics course. The financial models were built using @Risk statistical software to apply a distribution shape to inputs. When I left investment banking, I purchased (with partners) an electricity business in Italy that had eight run-of-river hydro plants and two CCGT facilities.

I’m also an environmentalist. I grew up mainly in rural Canada and I like the outdoors a little bit more than people. Now I live in Switzerland and do a lot of mountain climbing. I donate to two (moderate) environmental groups.

I believe that crypto is the best way to reduce inequality in the world and provide financial inclusion to low-income people. I think that most people get into crypto for reasons related to value and values.

I write this article because I’m sick of being confronted by people, even others in crypto, about crypto allegedly being an environmental disaster. It isn’t. That is an egregious lie.

Patient Zero

Almost all news articles that repeat the lie that crypto is an environmental problem can be traced back to one