The Billionaire founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, took to Reddit during the Ask Me Anything (AMA) session to pronounce his reservations concerning cryptocurrency.
In his article, Gates said that the main characteristic of cryptocurrencies is “their anonymity”, which is not good, he said, because the government must watch money laundering, tax evasion and terrorist financing. Of course, there is also a problem with illicit drugs.
“Currently, cryptocurrencies are used to buy fentanyl and other drugs, so this is an exceptional technology that has caused deaths in a fairly direct way,” Gates said. “I think that the speculative wave around the ICOs (initial offers of currencies) and cryptocurrencies is super risky for those who go long.”
Gates’ remarks led to severe criticism from the Redditors participating in the discussion. While some advised Gates to revisit the Bitcoin white paper, many others criticized him for trying to use his societal status to influence the cryptocurrency market in a negative way.
Even as Gate remain skeptical of cryptocurrencies, his Microsoft Corporation has continued to build interest in the underlying blockchain technology. Over the past year, Microsoft participated in several business initiatives related to blockchain technology.
Back in 2015, Bill Gates had a more optimistic approach towards cryptocurrencies. In an interview with Erik Schatzker on Bloomberg TV’s Smart Street show, Gates said:
“bitcoin is better than currency in that you don’t have to physically be in the same place, and of course for large transactions currency can get pretty inconvenient.”
He however, added that he does not foresee cryptocurrencies becoming a payment system of the future.