Morgan Creek Is Betting $1 Million That Crypto Can Beat the S&P

Morgan Creek Digital wants to echo Warren Buffett's famous bet by wagering $1 million that crypto will outperform the S&P 500 over 10 years.

AccessTimeIconDec 6, 2018 at 4:45 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 13, 2021 at 8:39 a.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Morgan Creek Digital, an institutional manager focused on cryptocurrencies and digital assets, wants to bet $1 million that such assets will outperform the S&P 500 during the next 10 years.

The asset manager is challenging any professional investor or firm that believes cryptocurrencies are "worthless" or that public equities are a better bet to prove their belief with a long-term bet against the Digital Asset Index Fund, a crypto index fund managed by Bitwise Asset Management.

The bet will be structured like the famous Warren Buffett bet, which began in 2008 when the billionaire investor wagered $1 million that investing in a S&P 500 index fund would see a greater result than investing in hedge funds.

Buffett won his bet earlier this year.

Now, Morgan Creek Digital is betting that an index fund containing bitcoin, ethereum, bitcoin cash, EOS, litecoin, monero, zcash, dash, iota and NEM will outperform the S&P 500 over the next decade.

In an email, Morgan Creek Digital founder and partner Anthony Pompliano told CoinDesk that the firm is confident in cryptocurrencies' performance outlook across the next 10 years, at least compared to public equities.

"It outperformed over the last 10 years and we believe that will not change moving forward for the next 10 years," he added, though the firm is "definitely not going off past performance" alone.

Rather, he referenced a post outlining how bitcoin's fundamentals would support its growth as an asset class, noting that while the post references bitcoin specifically, his team holds similar views on the crypto space as a whole.

These fundamentals include the fact that the number of wallets and nodes supporting the network continue to grow, according to the post.

"The likely candidate will believe strongly in public equities or be very bearish on cryptoassets," Pompliano said Thursday.

The bet will begin on Jan. 1, 2019 and conclude in 2029 – should any investors take Morgan Creek up on their proposition.

Bitcoin image via Shutterstock

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.