Warren Buffett calls Bitcoin a ‘gambling token’

Bitcoin has no intrinsic value, but that does not stop people from wanting to play roulette. Buffett said this in an interview with CNBC.

“#Bitcoin is a gambling token and it doesn’t have any intrinsic value. But that doesn’t stop people from wanting to play the roulette wheel,” says Warren Buffett on #crypto. pic.twitter.com/6MQAiyrS5J

— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) April 12, 2023

Buffett noted that people have a propensity to pursue ‘easy money’—a trait baked into human nature.

The billionaire is known for his criticism of Bitcoin. In February 2020 he called the first cryptocurrency ‘a total zero’ and valueless. In May 2022 he stated that he would not entertain the hypothetical possibility of buying all the bitcoins for $25.

Earlier Buffett predicted the demise of the crypto industry. Speaking of digital gold, he used terms such as ‘rat poison squared’ and ‘the illusion of having no intrinsic value’.

Buffett’s ally, Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman Charlie Munger, shares similar views.

In 2022 the executive called cryptocurrencies ‘an investment in nothing’ and drew a parallel between digital assets and ‘a venereal disease’. Earlier he compared Tesla and Bitcoin to ‘lice and fleas’, and also questioned whether digital gold could ‘become a global means of payment’.

Back in February 2023, Munger proposed following China’s example and banning cryptocurrencies in the United States.