Social impact: The neglected child of crypto

Social impact: The neglected child of crypto

Following the collapse of US-based crypto exchange platform FTX, the future and stability of crypto has come into question once again. Jeetu Kataria, CEO of DIFX, a global cross-asset exchange, argues that the real value of cryptocurrencies lies in its financial and social inclusion

Following its debut as a new asset class, crypto seems to have quickly gotten a bad rap because of its negative impact on the environment. Out of all cryptocurrencies, the main culprit is Bitcoin. The world’s most popular cryptocurrency is believed to consume more electricity in a year than Kazakhstan, the Philippines and Finland, according to the Cambridge Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Index.

Even though environmental or energy crises are typically the reasons to raise flags on Bitcoin’s energy consumption, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing is another concept that looks deeply into the matter. ESG investing gauges each investment based on three main criteria, and Bitcoin, may come a little short on the Environmental side.