Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman and Warren Buffett’s business partner Charles Munger has died at the age of 99, Reuters.
In recent years he was known for his outspoken remarks against digital gold.
“Berkshire Hathaway would not have achieved its current status without Charlie’s inspiration, wisdom and involvement,” Buffett, his friend and Berkshire Hathaway partner, paid tribute to Munger.
Over the past 44 years the company they run has delivered a compound annual growth rate in book value in ~20% — twice the S&P 500 index.
Munger was a staunch opponent of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies. In 2021 he compared Tesla and Bitcoin to “lice and fleas”, and questioned whether digital gold could be “become a global means of payment.”
In 2022 he called cryptocurrencies “an investment in nothing” and praised China for banning them. Later Munger criticised U.S. authorities for not banning digital assets and called “idiots” all those who disagree with his stance.
In October 2023, the former Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman allowed the collapse of most cryptocurrencies to zero.