Charlie Munger on Bitcoin: “That was the stupidest investment I ever saw”

Warren Buffet’s right hand man Charlie Munger continued his bitter tirade against Bitcoin and crypto at a Zoom conference on Thursday.

An incredibly successful businessman

Charlie Munger is the Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and together with Chairman Warren Buffet he has presided over incredibly successful investments over many years.

The Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman is now 99 years of age, and to still be working and speaking at conferences bears testimony to his good health and an indomitable will power. 

Scathing of crypto

There is one thing however that appears to exercise Munger more than anything else in the world of investing, and that is cryptocurrency, and especially Bitcoin, which he cannot attach enough colourful epithets to.

No doubt aware of the potential outburst it could cause, at the Zoom Zoomtopia Conference he was asked for his predictions for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Munger was true to form and stated:

“Don’t get me started on bitcoins. That was the stupidest investment I ever saw,”

Munger was also scathing on cryptocurrency in general, saying: “Most of those investments are going to zero.”

Opinion

Charlie Munger might have an axe to grind when it comes to cryptocurrencies. He, Buffet, and Berkshire Hathaway are deeply entrenched in the current monetary system, and success for crypto is likely to take away from the dollar system he loves so well.

After so many years of navigating the intricacies of banking, money flows, and asset investments, Munger might find it almost impossible to come to grips with what might be seen as a rival system that has its own set of intricacies. 99 years old might be a little late to start even with the basics of the cryptocurrency industry. 

Be that as it may, Munger is very probably right, at least on one of his crypto predictions, and that is the going to zero of most crypto investments. This probably has to happen. There are far too many cryptocurrencies, and just like with the dot-com era, a wholesale destruction of the fluff in the sector needs to take place.

However, saying that Bitcoin is a stupid investment is rather a crass statement that Munger will need to be forgiven for in respect to his advanced years.

Larry Fink controls a far bigger business than Munger does and it’s likely that he understands assets just as well. Fink has managed to change his mind after first labelling Bitcoin an “index of money laundering” back in 2017. Now that he has seen the light, he recently referred to Bitcoin as an “international asset” and called it “digital gold”.

It’s a shame that someone with such a distinguished career as Munger is not able to see the writing on the wall, and may go down in history with the same reputation of those who formed the Flat Earth Society.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.