<blockquote>
<p><strong>BitCoin burning is the process by which digital currency miners and developers can remove bitcoins from circulation</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>I think you'll find that &quot;Bitcoin burning&quot; refers to owners of Bitcoin burning their own money (not anyone elses) by the equivalent of sending it to an address that no-one owns.</p>
<p>It is not something that miners or developers do with other people's money.</p>
<hr />
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Isn't burning bitcoins a kind of fraud?</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>One definition of fraud is</p>
<blockquote>
<p>wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Burning your own Bitcoin (and no-one else can) is not a way to deceive others (at least not in any obvious way) and does not by itself result in any financial gain for the person burning their own money.</p>
<p>It is not fraud, per se, to burn your own money.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T10:45:04.283Z
"It is not fraud, per se, to burn your own money." depends on which currency your money is in. It's not [legal](https://law.stackexchange.com/a/47259) to burn USD. (I'm curious if it is legal to send USDT to a burn address and not tell Tether about it)
MCCCS
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T10:49:45.907Z
If this action leads to some kind of famine in the cryptocurrency market, then it can be considered a criminal act.
AirGap
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T10:59:08.023Z
@AirGap: (1) Not all criminal acts are frauds. (2) The consensus view among Bitcoin owners is that they are very happy when someone else burns their Bitcoin because general Bitcoin owners perceive that act increases the value of the remaining Bitcoins.
RedGrittyBrick
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T11:02:41.693Z
@MCCCS: (1) The question was whether it was fraud, not about other law. (2) The question was about Bitcoin, not USD or USDT.
RedGrittyBrick
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T09:13:24.710Z
2021-06-03T09:30:34.217Z
2021-06-03T09:30:34.217Z
RedGrittyBrick
<p>Are they lying about something? Not really. This would be like if you put a bunch of money in a vault, threw away the key, buried the vault, and then wiped your memory so you don't know where it's buried. Would that be fraud?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T10:55:52.217Z
The consequences of this action can be devastating for others. And those who do so knowingly will face legal consequences. This is different from what you do unintentionally.
AirGap
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T20:14:59.740Z
Why would destroying something you own have devastating effects on others? I can happily burn wood I own, or throw dishware on the ground if it makes me happy. There is no reason why the same wouldn't be true for cryptocurrency - you can do with it what you want. For fiat currencies there are often specific laws preventing this, as they are national bank obligations, not fully "owned" by the holder.
Pieter Wuille
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-06-03T05:57:19.507Z
2021-06-03T05:57:19.507Z
Alex K
<p>BitCoin burning is the process by which digital currency miners and developers can remove bitcoins from circulation, thereby slowing down inflation rates or reducing the total circulating supply of bitcoins.</p>
<p>Isn't burning bitcoins a kind of fraud?</p>

<blockchain><buy-bitcoins><fraud><terminology><business>
Isn't burning bitcoins a kind of fraud?
AirGap
# Isn't burning bitcoins a kind of fraud?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-06-03)

BitCoin burning is the process by which digital currency miners and developers can remove bitcoins from circulation, thereby slowing down inflation rates or reducing the total circulating supply of bitcoins.

Isn't burning bitcoins a kind of fraud?

**Tags:** blockchain, buy-bitcoins, fraud, terminology, business


---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-06-03. Score: 4

> **BitCoin burning is the process by which digital currency miners and developers can remove bitcoins from circulation**

I think you'll find that "Bitcoin burning" refers to owners of Bitcoin burning their own money (not anyone elses) by the equivalent of sending it to an address that no-one owns.

It is not something that miners or developers do with other people's money.

---

> **Isn't burning bitcoins a kind of fraud?**

One definition of fraud is

> wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain.

Burning your own Bitcoin (and no-one else can) is not a way to deceive others (at least not in any obvious way) and does not by itself result in any financial gain for the person burning their own money.

It is not fraud, per se, to burn your own money.

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: "It is not fraud, per se, to burn your own money." depends on which currency your money is in. It's not [legal](https://law.stackexchange.com/a/47259) to burn USD. (I'm curious if it is legal to send USDT to a burn address and not tell Tether about it)  
> **username_0**: If this action leads to some kind of famine in the cryptocurrency market, then it can be considered a criminal act.  
> **username_1**: @username_0: (1) Not all criminal acts are frauds. (2) The consensus view among Bitcoin owners is that they are very happy when someone else burns their Bitcoin because general Bitcoin owners perceive that act increases the value of the remaining Bitcoins.  
> **username_1**: @username_2: (1) The question was whether it was fraud, not about other law. (2) The question was about Bitcoin, not USD or USDT.  

---

### Answer by username_3 on 2021-06-03. Score: 1

Are they lying about something? Not really. This would be like if you put a bunch of money in a vault, threw away the key, buried the vault, and then wiped your memory so you don't know where it's buried. Would that be fraud?

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: The consequences of this action can be devastating for others. And those who do so knowingly will face legal consequences. This is different from what you do unintentionally.  
> **username_4**: Why would destroying something you own have devastating effects on others? I can happily burn wood I own, or throw dishware on the ground if it makes me happy. There is no reason why the same wouldn't be true for cryptocurrency - you can do with it what you want. For fiat currencies there are often specific laws preventing this, as they are national bank obligations, not fully "owned" by the holder.  

---

