Charlie Munger: I don't know which is worse, Tesla or Bitcoin

Source: Sina Technology

Beijing time, February 25, morning news, it was reported that on Wednesday, Charlie Munger, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and Buffett's long-time business partner, refuted the surge in Tesla's stock price and the recent Bitcoin craze.

At the annual shareholders' meeting of the Daily Report, Munger was interviewed in which he said he didn't know whether it was crazier for Bitcoin price to reach $50,000 or for Tesla to reach a fully diluted enterprise value of $1 trillion.

“I have the same perplexity that Samuel Johnson had when faced with a similar problem, when he said, ‘I cannot decide which is better, the flea or the louse.’ I feel the same way about this choice. I don’t know which is worse.”

Tesla's stock price has soared 743% in the past year, but has fallen 3% since the beginning of 2021. Tesla's current market value is $689 billion. After announcing the purchase of $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin, the price of this cryptocurrency has continued to soar in the past week, reaching more than $50,000.

Munger was also asked what the biggest threat to the banking industry is, Bitcoin or digital wallets like Apple Pay and Square.

He said: "I don't know what the future of banking will look like, and I don't know how the payment system will develop in the future. But I do think that a well-run bank has made a great contribution to civilization, and central banks around the world like to control their own banking systems and their own money supply. Therefore, I don't think Bitcoin will eventually become a medium of exchange for the whole world. It is too volatile and cannot play the role of a medium of exchange well. And it really looks like an artificial substitute for gold. Because I never buy gold, I won't buy Bitcoin either."

Munger also suggested that others follow his lead, adding: “Bitcoin reminds me of what Oscar Wilde said about fox hunting. He said it was a ‘quiet pursuit of inedible things by silent men.’ ”

At the event, Munger also issued a warning to novice investors. He believes that many novice investors are currently being lured into a trading bubble by applications such as Robinhood.