Michael Saylor, CEO and founder of MicroStrategy has criticized China’s ongoing action against Bitcoin (BTC), saying it will prove to be “a trillion-dollar mistake.”
Appearing on Bloomberg Technology, the entrepreneur told Emily Chang, “China had 50% market share of bitcoin and they were generating $10 billion a year, in a business that was growing 100% a year, year-over-year.”
He went on to opine that the Chinese government’s crackdown has “squeezed the [bitcoin] industry out of China.”
Mr Saylor also said that this action is a tragedy for Chinese miners. Over the last few weeks, the crackdown forced miners to move their operations overseas, with the United States proving a popular destination. More specifically Texas, due to their cheap energy prices and pro-crypto government. Reports indicate that Bitmain, Blockcap, Argo Blockchain, and Great American Mining are rumored to have moved their operations there.
In addition, Francis Suarez, Mayor of Miami, said earlier in the month that his city would welcome the displaced miners.
MicroStrategy increases BTC holdings
Emily Chang also dedicated part of her interview with Saylor to discuss the current BTC dip. On June 21, MicroStrategy added a further 13,005 BTC to its already considerable holding, which now totals at over 100,000 BTC. Valued in excess of $3 billion.
Asserting that the CEO had “bought the dip”, Ms Chang then asked if he had considered the possibility that the dip was actually “part of a prolonged slide.”
Mr Saylor answered that China’s “rushed exodus of capital and mining” is currently driving the crypto market dynamic.
He went on to refer to his company’s own strategy as “long-term” and assessed that BTC is for property what the iPhone is for music.
“Bitcoin is the dematerialization of property,” he explained. “We’re sucking the value out of gold and real estate and other property assets and collectibles and art. We’re putting it on a blockchain, we’re giving it to the people. It’s a long-term trend; it’s a million times more efficient than hauling your property around on your back.”
The CEO later took to Twitter to reiterate some main points from his interview. In one tweet, he said “If you want to give joy to 5 billion people, you need digital music. If you want to give knowledge to 5 billion people, you need digital books. If you want to give wealth to 5 billion people, you need digital property.”