Berkshire Hathaway's Charlie Munger Calls for Crypto Ban in the US

The veteran investor doubled down on his bitcoin skepticism, comparing it to gambling contracts.

AccessTimeIconFeb 2, 2023 at 9:41 a.m. UTC
Updated May 9, 2023 at 4:07 a.m. UTC

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) Vice Chairman and staunch bitcoin skeptic Charlie Munger has called for the United States to follow in the footsteps of China and ban cryptocurrencies.

In an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal, Munger attributed the rise of cryptocurrencies to a gap in regulation as crypto assets aren't currencies, commodities or securities.

"Instead, it’s a gambling contract with a nearly 100% edge for the house, entered into in a country where gambling contracts are traditionally regulated only by states that compete in laxity," Munger wrote. "The U.S. should now enact a new federal law that prevents this from happening."

In 2021, Munger labeled bitcoin's (BTC) relative success, at the time as "disgusting" after alluding to how it is used by kidnappers and extortionists. A year later, the 99-year-old called bitcoin an "investment in nothing" as he doubled down on his skeptical stance.

This isn't the first time Munger or Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett, also known as the "Oracle of Omaha," have gone after crypto with Munger even going as far to say that he wished crypto had “never been invented."

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Oliver Knight is a CoinDesk reporter based between London and Lisbon. He does not own any crypto.


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