Three Essays on Bitcoin, Energy, and Digital Asset Public Policy

The environmental impact of cryptocurrencies which rely on energy intensive, “proof of work” (PoW) cryptographic processes is a chief concern for policymakers considering digital asset public policy legislation and regulations. As other cryptocurrencies tout greater efficiency and drastically lower energy expenditures, Bitcoin still dominates the cryptocurrency space by tenure and market cap, despite its continued reliance on PoW protocols. Where most academic work focuses on Bitcoin’s propensity for electricity consumption, these essays examine the Bitcoin network’s relationship with nation-state public policy. The first essay explores the governance structure of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) like Bitcoin. It grounds an understanding of DAO governance in a multidisciplinary review of network theory and highlights the relevant policy implications therein. The second essay examines how the Bitcoin network responded to an adverse public policy intervention – China’s cryptocurrency mining ban. Finally, the third essay assesses whether the economic incentive structure built into the Bitcoin protocol can align with environmental and energy public policy goals through an empirical analysis of mining data centers in Texas.

Author

• Royal, Gabriel Michael

Language

• en

Keyword

• Network
• Decentralization
• Texas
• Economics
• Bitcoin
• Energy

Date created

• 2023

Type of Work

• Dissertation

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• Public Policy & Administration

Degree

• Ph.D.

Advisor

• Cordes, Joseph

Committee Member(s)

• Linquiti, Peter
• Yang, Lang

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/rv042t808