The head of the now-defunct Stratton Oakmont brokerage, Jordan Belfort, whose character served as the inspiration for the main figure in The Wolf of Wall Street, has admitted that he took the wrong position on Bitcoin. Fortune reports.
Belfort recalled predicting the fall of the first cryptocurrency on a TV show in 2017. At that time the asset was rising toward $19,000.
“Then I was right, but I also thought that Bitcoin would disappear forever. It was hard to sell and easy to buy — all the signs of manipulation,” Belfort added.
The former broker was convinced regulators would wipe out cryptocurrencies. According to him, digital gold seemed an ideal vehicle for money laundering, which is why authorities should put an end to it.
Belfort contrasted Bitcoin with stocks. The latter, he said, cannot rise forever, and the issuance of new securities drags their price down. The former cryptocurrency attracts investors with its limited supply.
“People are spoiled by Bitcoin. It has a limited supply. Shares can be issued infinitely,” noted Belfort.
He added that the first cryptocurrency now has a much larger base of buyers than ever before. According to the expert, thanks to these advantages over stocks Bitcoin will reach $100,000.
In February 2018 Belfort stated that digital gold could rise to $50,000, before inevitably collapsing. He also called the asset “an ideal tool for manipulation”.
In August 2018 Belfort added that retail cryptocurrency investors have had their brains washed, and in the near future they may lose a lot.
In November 2020, billionaire and founder of Bridgewater Associates Ray Dalio admitted that he could have been wrong about Bitcoin.
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