dailyhodl.com
Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett and company vice chairman Charlie Munger are sending a clear message that they are not fans of cryptocurrencies despite the meteoric rise of the emerging asset class.
During the company’s recent annual shareholder meeting, the Oracle of Omaha dodges a question regarding the $2 trillion valuation of cryptocurrencies as he does not want to make any statement that may not be to the liking of hundreds of thousands of crypto holders watching the event.
“We’ve probably got hundreds of thousands of people watching this that own Bitcoin, and we’ve probably got two people that are short. So we got a choice of making 400,000 people mad at us and unhappy and or making two people happy. And that’s just a dumb equation.”
While Buffett kept his opinion to himself, his long-time business partner Charlie Munger did not hold back in his statements.
“I don’t welcome a currency that’s so useful to kidnappers and extortionists and so forth. Nor do I like just shuffling out a few extra billions and billions and billions of dollars to somebody who just invented a new financial product out of thin air. So I think I should say, modestly, that I think the whole damn development is disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization. And I’ll leave the criticism to others.”
Buffett and Munger have long been critics of crypto. Buffett thinks that cryptocurrencies have zero value and once called Bitcoin “rat poison squared.” During a CNBC interview last year, he vowed never to own any cryptocurrency.
Munger also says Bitcoin has no value, noting that it is “worthless, artificial gold” and trading cryptocurrencies is “just dementia.”