Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett says he won’t buy all the bitcoin in the world for $25. Meanwhile, his longtime business partner and right-hand man Charlie Munger says bitcoin is stupid and evil, noting that the cryptocurrency makes him look bad.
Warren Buffett explains why he won’t buy bitcoin
Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger talked about bitcoin during Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholder meeting on Saturday. Buffett is Berkshire’s CEO and chairman of the board. Munger, often referred to as his right-hand man, is the company’s vice chairman.
The Oracle of Omaha, known for saying that bitcoin is “probably rat poison squared,” explained at some length why he would not buy BTC. He said:
Whether it will rise or fall next year, or five or ten years from now, I don’t know. But one thing is certain: it produces nothing… It has magic in it, and people give magic to many things.”
Buffett gave several examples. He would pay $25 billion for a 1% stake in all farmland in the United States. He would also pay $25 billion for a 1% stake in all multifamily properties in the country. “I would write you a check this afternoon,” he confirmed.
However, when it comes to buying bitcoin, he elaborated:
If you told me you owned all the bitcoins in the world and offered them to me for $25, I wouldn’t take them because what would I do with them? One way or another, I would have to sell them to you. It wouldn’t do anything.
Unlike bitcoin, “apartments will bring in rents and farms will bring in food,” he stressed.
The Berkshire boss went on to discuss the U.S. dollar. “Assets, to have value, have to bring something to somebody. And there is only one currency that is accepted. You can come up with all sorts of things – we can issue Berkshire coins … but at the end of the day it’s money,” he added, holding out a $20 bill. “And there’s no reason in the world why the United States government . will allow Berkshire money to replace their money.”
Buffett, however, is investing in bitcoin-friendly digital bank Nubank, which offers BTC investments.
Charlie Munger says bitcoin is stupid, evil and makes him look like a fool
On Saturday, Munger also reiterated his tough stance on bitcoin. The Berkshire deputy chairman shared:
In my life, I try to avoid things that are stupid, mean and make me look bad in comparison to someone else – and bitcoin does all three of those things.
“First of all, it’s stupid because it’s likely to fall to zero anyway,” Munger continues. “It’s evil because it undermines the Federal Reserve system… and third, it makes us look stupid compared to China’s communist leader. He was smart enough to ban bitcoin in China.”
The vice chairman of Berkshire also mentioned bitcoin in response to a question about what the only investment should be to keep money out of high inflation. He said:
When you have your own retirement account and your friendly advisor suggests you put all your money in bitcoin, just say no.
Munger has repeatedly criticized bitcoin. In February, he said the government should ban the cryptocurrency, calling it a “venereal disease.” He has praised China for banning cryptocurrency several times in the past, saying he wished cryptocurrency had never been invented. Last May, he said bitcoin was “disgusting and against the interests of civilization.”
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