[Bitcoin Now] Drops to 58 Million Won Range... Yellen, US Treasury Secretary, Criticizes Repeatedly

Dropped sharply a day after exceeding 65 million won
Hesitation amid continuous criticism from US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and others

Janet Yellen, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, is giving a speech at the Presidential Transition Committee headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, on December 1 last year when she was a nominee.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] The representative cryptocurrency Bitcoin has fallen to the 58 million KRW range. This decline is interpreted as a result of the U.S. economic leaders repeatedly criticizing Bitcoin and Tesla CEO Elon Musk stating that cryptocurrency prices are high.

According to the domestic cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, as of 10:50 a.m. on the 23rd, Bitcoin recorded 58,881,000 KRW, down about 4.6% compared to the previous day. It also plunged to 56,562,000 KRW at 11:17 p.m. the previous day, falling about 13.6% from the day's high.

The U.S. financial authorities hinting at further cryptocurrency regulations seem to have had a negative impact. On the 22nd (local time), according to U.S. economic media CNBC, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated at the New York Times DealBook Conference that "Bitcoin is not being used as a means of transaction and is for illegal finance." She also criticized, "Bitcoin is a very inefficient processing method, and the energy consumed for it is enormous."

Concerns about the extreme power consumption caused by cryptocurrency mining have existed for a long time. To mine cryptocurrencies, complex algorithms must be solved, which generates heat, noise, and massive power consumption. According to the University of Cambridge in the UK on the 13th (local time), the power used for Bitcoin mining exceeds the total power consumption of the entire population of Argentina.

Yellen further said, "Bitcoin is a highly speculative asset, and investors should be concerned about potential losses." In an interview with CNBC on the 18th (local time), she also defined Bitcoin as "a very speculative asset."

There is also an interpretation that cryptocurrency prices fell due to Elon Musk's remarks. On the 22nd (local time), U.S. economic media Bloomberg reported that after Musk tweeted on the 20th (local time) that "Bitcoin and Ethereum seem a bit high," prices began to decline. In fact, Bitcoin prices have fluctuated several times with just one word from Musk. On the 29th of last month (local time), when Musk tweeted, "In hindsight, Bitcoin was inevitable," the price rose about 11% within just one hour.

Meanwhile, there are claims that Tesla has already made significant profits from Bitcoin investments. According to CNBC on the 21st (local time), Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives claimed that Tesla's book profit from Bitcoin investments is about 1 billion USD (approximately 1.1115 trillion KRW). He explained, "As of the 20th, Bitcoin has risen about 65% compared to the 31st of last month, and accordingly, the Bitcoin valuation gains have surpassed Tesla's electric vehicle sales revenue of 721 million USD last year." Earlier, on the 8th, Tesla disclosed that it purchased about 1.5 billion USD worth of Bitcoin. However, the specific purchase timing and whether profits have been realized were not disclosed.