Time Interview: Buterin Says Crypto Is Becoming Right-Leaning Thing, Calls Bored Ape Yacht a Different Form of Gambling

Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum (ETH), has expressed his concerns over the future of the fast-growing crypto industry.

In a recent interview with the popular news website, TIME, Buterin stated that the crypto ecosystem will have to lose some of its potential before the asset class could be considered a right-leaning thing.

He said failure to become a right-leaning thing will turn it to prey in the hands of dictatorial governments.

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Vitalik Buterin noted:

“There are definitely signs that are making it seem like crypto is on the verge of becoming a right-leaning thing. If it does happen, we’ll sacrifice a lot of the potential it has to offer.”

Ethereum co-founder added that he doesn’t think crypto should remain decentralized as it is now. He’s of the opinion that governments can possibly turn it into a means to crackdown on opposition.

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TIME interview’s excerpts read in part as follows:

“If Mark Zuckerberg shouldn’t have the power to make epoch-changing decisions or control users’ data for profit, Buterin believes, then neither should he send some people to other blockchains, or allow others to use his platform [Ethereum] in unsavory ways.

“To Buterin, the worst-case scenario for the future of crypto is that blockchain technology ends up concentrated in the hands of dictatorial governments. He is unhappy with El Salvador’s rollout of Bitcoin as legal tender, which has been riddled with identity theft and volatility.

“The prospect of governments using the technology to crack down on dissent is why Buterin is adamant about remaining decentralized crypto. He sees the technology as the most powerful equalizer to surveillance technology deployed by governments and powerful companies alike.”

Buterin Says Bored Ape Yacht Is a Different Form of Gambling

In the course of the interview, Buterin criticized the team behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), tagging the popular non-fungible token (NFT) launched on the Ethereum network as a different form of gambling.

Buterin said, “these $3 million monkeys” have made a handful of people rich, who continue to flaunt lavish lifestyles and give a bad name to the crypto industry. He added that he would rather let Ethereum offend some people than turn into something that stands for nothing.

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