Warren Buffett criticizes bitcoin, says it 'doesn't have any intrinsic value'
Buffett has previously commented on bitcoin
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Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett recently offered his opinion on bitcoin, appearing to criticize it.
Bitcoin is "a gambling token, and it doesn’t have any intrinsic value," the "Oracle of Omaha" said in a CNBC interview clip posted Wednesday on Twitter by "Squawk Box."
He made the comment about cryptocurrency in response to a question from co-anchor Becky Quick.
Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc, pauses while playing bridge as part of the company annual meeting weekend in Omaha, Neb., May 6, 2018. (REUTERS/Rick Wilking/File Photo/File Photo / Reuters Photos)
"But that doesn’t stop people from wanting to play a roulette wheel and think that if there’s a 37, you know, one zero or double zero, doesn’t make any difference. Yeah, it makes a difference," Buffett told CNN. "It’s a scores now path that eats up your money if you spend the rest of your life spinning around the roulette wheel.
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"But they feature the winners and people get excited about it, and that’s why the slot machines make a lot of noise when they’re paying out."
Bitcoin spiked 10% amid the downfall of Silicon Valley Bank. (Karen Bleier/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Bitcoin prices took a tumble over the last few days. (Fernando Gutierrez-Juarez/picture alliance via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Buffett has made his dislike of bitcoin clear on other occasions, including in 2019 when he described it as a "gambling device" and said it was "not an investment to me," FOX Business previously reported.
On Monday, bitcoin saw its price breach $30,000. That last time it did that was in June. It was hovering around $29,900 two days later.
Other figures have voiced skepticism about bitcoin. In January, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon described cryptocurrency as a "hyped-up fraud," comparing it to a "pet rock" while speaking with CNBC.
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Buffett, who has served as Berkshire Hathaway’s CEO for decades, also touched on topics like U.S. banking sector turbulence and companies Berkshire has invested in. Forbes has pegged his net worth at an estimated $110.9 billion.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRK.A | BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC. | 613,283.35 | -1,891.65 | -0.31% |