As noted by CNBC, during a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” session on Tuesday, Gates explained that he thinks cryptocurrency is really bad because it aids and abets people who want to keep their financial transactions hidden from the government. He seemed particularly concerned with whether the blockchain revolution is mostly revolutionizing financial crime, terrorism, and drug dealing, thus killing people “in a fairly direct way”:
he also said "The main feature of cryptocurrencies is their anonymity. I don't think this is a good thing. The Governments ability to find money laundering and tax evasion and terrorist funding is a good thing. 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. I think the speculative wave around ICOs and cryptocurrencies is super risky for those who go long."
