Warren Buffett, the legendary investor who refused to pay $25 for all the Bitcoin worldwide, officially steps down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Source: Yellow Original Title: Warren Buffett, who said he wouldn’t pay $25 for all the Bitcoin in the world, is retiring

Original Link: Warren Buffett, this legendary investor, once famously derided Bitcoin as “mouse poison squared,” and claimed that he wouldn’t buy all the cryptocurrencies in the world even at $25. He officially stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway on Wednesday, ending his 60-year dominance over the $1 trillion market cap conglomerate. The 94-year-old Buffett is handing operational control over to Greg Abel, while himself retaining the position of Chairman of the Board, marking the end of an era defined by value investing, long-term bets on American businesses, and staunch skepticism towards digital assets.

“Mouse poison squared” and the proposal to buy all Bitcoin at $25

Buffett’s most memorable comment on Bitcoin came at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting in Omaha in 2018, where he escalated his criticism of the cryptocurrency to a higher level than his 2014 “mouse poison” remark.

“This might be mouse poison squared,” Buffett told CNBC, referring to Bitcoin’s speculative nature and lack of intrinsic value.

At the time of this comment, Bitcoin was trading at around $9,000, after crashing from nearly $20,000 a few months earlier.

At the 2022 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting, Buffett further sharpened his criticism, telling the tens of thousands of investors gathered there that he would not buy all the existing Bitcoin in the world at $25.

“If you tell me you own all the Bitcoin in the world and offer it to me at $25, I wouldn’t accept because what could I do with it? I have to sell it back to you somehow. It does nothing,” Buffett said, contrasting this asset with productive investments like farmland or apartment buildings that generate income.

“For an asset to have value, it must provide value to someone. Only one currency is accepted. You can invent all kinds of things — we could issue Berkshire coins… but ultimately, this is money,” he added, holding up a $20 bill.

Munger’s “feces” comment and Berkshire’s stance on cryptocurrencies

Buffett’s late business partner Charlie Munger was equally outspoken.

At the 2021 annual meeting, Munger called Bitcoin “disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization.”

In a 2022 interview with The Wall Street Journal, he said he was “proud” that Berkshire avoided cryptocurrencies, adding, “I think I should humbly say that this whole damn development is disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization. I’ll leave the criticism to others.”

Later, Munger described cryptocurrencies as “feces” and compared their promotion to “sexually transmitted diseases.”

A trajectory built on tangible value over 60 years

Buffett’s retirement comes after transforming Berkshire from a failing textile mill (which he began acquiring in 1962 at $7.60 per share) into a conglomerate whose Class A stock now trades at over $750,000.

His personal wealth is almost entirely composed of Berkshire shares, valued at about $150 billion, despite having donated over $60 billion to charity over the past two decades.