Bitcoin is on the rise again. Not only that, but there’s also talks of Wall Street warming up to it.
The digital currency was meant to be used by consumers for transactions that they didn’t want financial institutions getting involved in.
It was something separate from the big banks, and it could be anonymous. That was the initial appeal of Bitcoin.
It was created in 2008 after the global financial crisis to replace the existing banking structure with an alternative that couldn’t be controlled by powerful big banks.
We all saw how much Bitcoin blew up last year. The entire digital currency realm was on fire. Everyone wanted to get their virtual hands on the currency. And a lot of first-time investors snagged up their pieces of the market.
But Wall Street had been one of the biggest critics of Bitcoin and other digital currencies. They called it a high-risk speculative investment and claimed that it had no real value.
Some of the world’s top investors have repeatedly spoken out about Bitcoin — about how it’s not something people should be investing in and how it’ll do more harm than good to both you and your wallet…
Billionaire Investors Are Saying “No” to Bitcoin
Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett continues to be a critic of Bitcoin. He told CNBC that the “asset itself is creating nothing.”
He continued by saying:
When you’re buying non-productive assets, all you’re counting on is the next person is going to pay you more because they’re even more excited about another next person coming along.
Buffett has been one of the most influential investors of all time. Other investors and Wall Street take his advice and stance very seriously. He’s been anti-Bitcoin since the hype around the digital coin began and as it continued to rise in 2017. And he’s still holding that stance.
Over the weekend, at Berkshire’s annual shareholder meeting, he called Bitcoin “probably rat poison squared.”
Berkshire Vice Chairman Charlie Munger also has the same view of Bitcoin as Buffett does.
On Monday, Munger told CNBC, “Bitcoin is worthless, artificial gold.”
He went on to say:
The fact that it’s clever computer science doesn’t mean it should be widely used, and that respectable people should encourage other people to speculate on it.
Munger isn’t afraid to share his opinions on Bitcoin. And those opinions happen to be very strong ones.
Both Buffett and Munger want to stress, especially to their shareholders, that investing in Bitcoin and this market isn’t a wise choice. At least, that’s how they feel about it. And that does hold some clout because both of these men have been very successful investors for years. But it doesn’t mean that they’re right about everything.
Microsoft Founder Bill Gates is also anti-Bitcoin. He’s said this about the digital currency:
As an asset class, you’re not producing anything and so you shouldn’t expect it to go up. It’s kind of a pure ‘greater fool theory’ type of investment.
Even though Gates is anti-Bitcoin, he does see value in the technology associated with the coin. He’s acknowledged the benefits of blockchain technology and said it’s “really good technology” for sharing databases and verifying transactions…
Wall Street Is Warming Up to Bitcoin
Despite what these billionaires are saying about Bitcoin, it looks like Wall Street might be warming up to the digital currency.
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), has been working on an online trading platform. And this platform will allow large investors to buy and hold Bitcoin.
This announcement came after Goldman Sachs went public about its plans to open a Bitcoin trading unit. This will be the very first of its kind for a Wall Street bank.
Wall Street is investing in a digital currency that has been called high-risk and speculative. But that’s not stopping them from getting a piece of the action.
They’ll be treading new waters…
Until next time,
Jennifer Clark
Pro Trader Today