Just last week, news broke that Tesla had purchased $1.5-billion in Bitcoin to ‘maximize returns on cash,’ and somewhat unsurprisingly, eyebrows are being raised. As reported by Markets Insider, Economist Nouriel Roubini is accusing Elon Musk of market manipulation and stating that the SEC (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission) should investigate.
The basis of Roubini’s accusations stems from Elon Musk’s tweets. Roubini accuses Elon of using his Twitter platform to pump up the price.
“For somebody like Elon Musk, who knows he has the market impact to manipulate, first take an individual position in Bitcoin, pump the price up, and then say that Tesla has invested.” Roubini said in an interview with CoinDesk.
“And Tesla doesn’t make any money yet, it’s also irresponsible, and it’s market manipulation. The SEC should be looking into people that have a market impact, and that manipulate the price of assets. That’s also criminal behavior” – Roubini in an interview with CoinDesk.
Commenting on @Tesla’s $1.5 billion bitcoin buy on #CDTV First Mover this morning, @Nouriel said it’s “criminal behavior” for Elon Musk to take an individual stance on bitcoin to pump up the price before announcing Tesla’s investment.”Talk about a criminal enterprise.” pic.twitter.com/aSHPX5ayHMFebruary 10, 2021
Of course, it’s important to note that at this time, not all the details are available. When the report landed, Bitcoin hadn’t surged to the all-time high yet — before Elon Musk started vocalizing positively about Bitcoin and other Cryptocoins on Twitter.
Frodo was the underdoge,All thought he would fail,Himself most of all. pic.twitter.com/zGxJFDzzrMFebruary 11, 2021
Pair that with rumors that Tesla is already selling at the new record highs, many individuals speculate that this was a move to reel in a bunch of cash and help Tesla to a good start to 2021. There are also rumors that Elon Musk has been deleting his Bitcoin tweets, but we are unable to confirm these.
Either way, it’s unclear what’s really going on — which is why economists are demanding that the SEC investigates the transaction.
Another Crypto Bubble?
Regardless of what really happened surrounding this transaction, it does appear we have found ourselves in another Crypto high. Mining, especially Ethereum is at an all-time high due to lavish profitability, which meanwhile is driving up the prices of graphics cards.
At the end of the day, it’s gamers and individuals who buy crypto in these highs that lose.