The author of ‘The Black Swan’ says the reason why he feels bitcoin ‘is a failure (at least for now)’ is that a currency is never supposed to be more volatile than what you can buy or sell with it.
February 13, 2021 / 06:35 PM IST
Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency which is drawing investors around the globe, is a ‘failure, at least for now’, said ‘The Black Swan’ author Nassim Nicholas Taleb.
In a series of tweets on February 12, Taleb said he would be completely divesting from Bitcoin. He cited the unprecedented volatility in its prices as the reason behind getting rid of the cryptocurrency.
“A currency is never supposed to be more volatile than what you buy and sell with it,” he said, while also pointing out that one “cannot price goods” in Bitcoin for now.
“In that respect, it’s a failure (at least for now),” Taleb further tweeted, adding that a cryptocurrency generates appeal on the “basis of some opacity”. In the case of Bitcoin, that appeal is missing, he suggested.
“You can anonymise a gold coin by remelting it. You can rework a spoon. BTC is more tractable than cash. (sic),” Taleb further posted on Twitter.
BTC Volatility is not dropping with time/at higher price, exactly what you don’t don’t need. pic.twitter.com/m5ZKUiuFia
— Nassim Nicholas Taleb (@nntaleb) February 13, 2021
Bitcoin’s value has increased by around 64 percent so far this year. The cryptocurrency received a major spurt following the $1.5 billion investment from Tesla on February 8. The Elon Musk-led company would also “begin accepting bitcoin as a form of payment for our products in the near future,” the official statement read.
}
else{
$(‘#outbrain_6507341’).html(”);
}
}