By Mark Ackman
It seems like Warren Buffet is back at it again with his anti-crypto rhetoric. In the latest anti-crypto interview with Squawk Box on CNBC, Buffet went on to draw false equivalencies between the crypto market and gambling.
Warren Buffet Calls Crypto ‘Gambling’
In describing the crypto market, he refers to crypto investment as ‘gambling.’ Explaining the current state of the market, he says that there’s an explosion of gambling. He goes on to say that if he’s watching a football game, he likes to make the occasional bet since it makes things somewhat interesting. However, he doesn’t intend on trying to earn a living by making a bet against the ‘house.’
To the average crypto investor, this could seem like a very narrow-minded opinion regarding crypto trading. However, if you’ve kept tabs on Buffet’s stance on cryptocurrency and Bitcoin over the years, you may notice that his latest comment is a bit of a shift from the usual direction.
In the last couple of years, he’s constantly made fun of cryptocurrencies and investors. In fact, his more controversial comments come from past interviews on CNBC as well.
Crypto ‘Appeals To Gambling Instinct,’ Says Buffet
In the interview, he explains how people enjoy playing the lottery and hoping to win something. In this way, cryptocurrency appeals to humans’ gambling instinct, which has led to a rise in gambling.
While speaking to the founder of Quicken Loans in a Squawk Box interview a little less than a decade ago, he called Bitcoin a ‘Mirage.’ In fact, he says that the entire concept of it having some sort of intrinsic value is a complete joke.
In another CNBC interview from 2014, he speculated on the longevity of Bitcoin and how long the fervor lasts. He commented that he wouldn’t be surprised if the flagship cryptocurrency isn’t around in the next decade or two.
At the time, he even said that Bitcoin couldn’t be treated as a currency in its own right because how its value is dependent on the dollar.
Buffet Shrugs off ‘Rat Poison Squared’ Question
While Buffet has had some pretty interesting takes on cryptocurrency in recent years, his most famous comment comes from an interview in January 2018. When the vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, Charlie Munger, asserted that Bitcoin was ‘rat poison,’ Buffet doubled down to say that it’s ‘rat poison squared.’
So, when analysts compared his earlier tone to that of his latest interview, it seems to have softened. When the interviewer asked when Bitcoin will be unveiled as ‘not a thing’ instead of just rat poison squared, Buffet dodged the question.
Instead, he said that asking such a question is equal to predicting when humans’ gambling instinct will disappear.