Ray Dalio, billionaire investor and founder of the world’s largest hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, shared his views on bitcoin during an interview with CNBC. He believes that the cryptocurrency will not be money or a medium for exchange. He believes that the incredible invention is receiving disproportionate attention, noting that its overall market capitalization is smaller than Microsoft’s.
Ray Dalio on Bitcoin
Ray Dalio, founder of the largest hedge fund in the world, Bridgewater Associates, spoke about bitcoin in an interview with CNBC. He referred to the world’s most valuable cryptocurrency, saying:
It is quite amazing that it has been possible for 12 years. But it seems disconnected from… It’s a small factor receiving disproportionate attention.
Speaking about the market capitalization of Microsoft, which was $1.92 trillion on Friday, compared to bitcoin, Dalio stated: “Biotech and many other industries are more interesting than bitcoin”. The billionaire continued:
It will not make you money. It is not an efficient way to store wealth. It is not a reliable medium for trade.
“But we are in a world where money as we know it is in danger… We are printing too much, and it is not just the United States, all the reserve currencies,” he said, citing problems with the euro and the Japanese yen. He added: “So in that world, the question is, what is money and how is it going to work? So when we look at something like China’s renminbi, and then you take digital renminbi, I think you’ll see it become more and more of a thing,” Dalio shared.
The Bridgewater Associates founder continued: “if you want a digital currency, you have to do something different” than bitcoin. However, he was adamant: “I don’t think stablecoins are good because then you get a fiat currency again.” He added:
What about inflation-linked currency that could offer better rates? You could use different words, but the most important would be “Okay, this might give me buying power because of each individual’s desires. What do they want? They want to protect their buying power.
“The closest thing to that is an inflation index bond and stuff,” Dalio stated. “But if you create a currency that says, okay, this is purchasing power that I know I can save and put my money into for a period of time, and then I can transact anywhere, I think that would be a good currency. ,” He went on. “So I think you’ll probably see development of coins that you haven’t seen that will probably end up being attractive and viable coins. I don’t think it’s bitcoin.”
Not Everyone Agrees With Ray Dalio
Following Dalio’s interview, many people went to Twitter to voice their disagreement with him. Some famous people also chimed in. Dalio simply described bitcoin while others identified it. Bitcoin has been around for more than 14 years, not 12 as the Bridgewater founder claimed.
“An ‘inflation-linked currency’ doesn’t make sense,” commented bitcoin advocate Robert Breedlove. “Lesson for Ray Dalio: The purchasing power of money is preserved through the integrity of its supply. Bitcoin has a perfectly integral money supply of 21M. In the long run, bitcoin is the perfect money to preserve purchasing power over time.”
Gabor Gurbacs, Strategy Advisor at Vaneck/MVIS tweeted: “Ray Dalio is wrong about Bitcoin. I respect Ray’s work and like his books, but his comments on Bitcoin are under-researched and disappointing.” Gurbacs added:
Ray’s views are concerning in light of the significance, scale and scope of the bitcoin market. Hundreds of thousands of people use bitcoin worldwide, with a significant number of users in emerging markets. Bitcoin is being transformed by censorship resistance.
Dalio used to be more bullish on bitcoin. In January 2021, he said: “I think Bitcoin is a great invention. To have invented a new type of money through a system that is programmed into a computer and that has been running for about 10 years and is rapidly gaining popularity as a type of money and as
