Musk's Decentralized Bitcoin Theory Put to the Test
A 2021 clip of Elon Musk speaking about Bitcoin is circulating again, where he framed the cryptocurrency's strength as its decentralized nature and lack of a 'throat to choke.'
Musk made this statement at The B Word conference in July 2021, where he redefined money as an information system for allocating labor. He highlighted the flaws in traditional payment systems, including low transaction volume, high costs, and poor usability.
The main argument Musk made was that Bitcoin has no central authority or 'throat to choke,' meaning there is nobody who can be pressured into emptying their account. This lack of control is a key aspect of Bitcoin's decentralized nature.
Tesla and SpaceX, both companies led by Elon Musk, have shown how this principle plays out in practice. Tesla bought $1.5 billion worth of BTC in 2021 but sold 75% of it for $936 million by mid-2022. In contrast, SpaceX has kept its 18,712 BTC since 2018 and has not changed its value despite fluctuations.
The two companies now hold a combined total of 30,221 BTC worth around $1.05 billion at current prices. This demonstrates that even if there is pressure to sell, the companies can still choose to keep their Bitcoin holdings intact.