Earlier in February, the richest tech billionaire had said during an interview that the Silicon Valley sometimes thinks their view is more important than the government, adding that he was wary of tech’s “enthusiasm about making financial transactions anonymous and invisible.” While at the time Gates didn’t go into details and the B&M Gates Foundation had refused to respond if the Microsoft co-founder indeed hates this cryptocurrency wave, Gates has finally come forward warning about these coins.During an “Ask Me Anything” session on Reddit, Gates was asked about his opinion on the cryptocurrency boom. Responding to the questions, he said that the main feature of cryptocurrencies is the anonymity and that primary feature can actually be harmful. “The government’s ability to find money laundering and tax evasion and terrorist funding is a good thing,” he wrote (via CNBC), adding that cryptocurrencies are causing deaths in a direct way.
“Right now, cryptocurrencies are used for buying fentanyl and other drugs, so it is a rare technology that has caused deaths in a fairly direct way.”The king of the software world also warns that cryptocurrency is a risky deal, adding that the “speculative wave around ICOs and crypto currencies is super risky for those who go long.”When asked how plain old cash has been used for criminal activities for centuries, Gates said that indeed cash has been used and can’t be tracked usually, but using digital currency is easier.
“Yes – anonymous cash is used for these kinds of things, but you have to be physically present to transfer it, which makes things like kidnapping payments more difficult.” Gates isn’t the first and won’t be the last to warn against cryptocurrencies. Some have called it a Ponzi scheme and others are waiting for this bubble to burst. While it cannot be ignored that the digital currencies have been favored by criminals on the dark web, hard cash is still used to power most of the criminal activities worldwide – not to forget someone has to still physically deliver those drugs or guns regardless of what mode of payment is used.