Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency in the world by market capitalization, has long been familiar with criticism from economists, politicians, banks, and investors.
Since its inception in 2008, Bitcoin has faced countless negative assessments and skepticism, with many calling it a scam or predicting that Bitcoin would collapse and lose all value.
However, over time, as Bitcoin evolved and matured, several previous critics changed their attitudes and even became supporters of this cryptocurrency. Others, however, lessened their reasons for opposition. Donald Trump and Michael Saylor are two of the most famous people to change their stance to support Bitcoin.
Although Bitcoin first reached the price milestone of $100,000 in December 2024, some Bitcoin critics remain steadfast in their opposition to this currency and continue to bet on the downturn of the increasingly evolving ecosystem.
We have selected some opinions from prominent commentators who continue to dismiss Bitcoin, or at least maintain a skeptical view of this currency as Bitcoin reaches new heights in 2024.
Peter Schiff: “Bitcoin may destroy the dollar”
Peter Schiff, an American stockbroker and a strong advocate for investing in gold, has emerged as one of the most steadfast and persistent opponents of Bitcoin.
Schiff has criticized Bitcoin since 2013, when its value fluctuated between $100 and $1,000. Nevertheless, despite his own skepticism about Bitcoin, his son, Spencer Schiff, decided to move his entire investment portfolio to Bitcoin in 2021.
The $100,000 price mark of Bitcoin certainly makes Schiff feel embarrassed, as he predicted in 2019 that Bitcoin would never reach this number.
Despite his incorrect predictions, Schiff continued to criticize Bitcoin and expressed concerns about the possibility of the US government establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve fund.
“Ironically, Bitcoin may destroy the dollar […] if the US government accepts Bitcoin, prints trillions of dollars to buy it, and creates a bigger bubble, dissipating national assets,” Schiff wrote on X on the day Bitcoin first reached $100,000.
In a subsequent post on December 8, Schiff called Bitcoin a “national security threat” and “public enemy number one” due to the risk of the US government using public money to buy BTC.
Perhaps instead of simply hating Bitcoin, he is feeling regret for not buying in since 2013. And perhaps, he is also someone who will never understand why simple paintings can be sold for hundreds of millions of USD.
Paul Krugman: “Crypto is for criminals”
Paul Krugman, an American economist and journalist who won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2008 for his research on economic geography and global trade, is a long-time opponent of Bitcoin.
Krugman has been mocked by the crypto community for incorrectly predicting in 1998 that the Internet would never have a greater impact than fax machines. Similarly, Schiff has also criticized Bitcoin since its early years.
In 2013, Krugman wrote an article in The New York Times titled “Bitcoin is bad,” in which he expressed distrust towards Bitcoin due to its lack of fundamental characteristics of a currency.
“Crypto is largely like a Ponzi scheme; perhaps this is just the time when the scheme runs out of participants,” Krugman said in a 2022 article.
Although Bitcoin's strong rise to $100,000 may surprise Krugman as he retires from The New York Times on December 6, his criticism of crypto does not stop.
On December 16, Krugman posted a blog titled “Crypto is for criminals,” repeating one of the reasons that Bitcoin opponents often mention.
He argued that while cash is “an inconvenient tool for large-scale criminal activities,” cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin can easily become ideal tools for illegal transactions.
“Perhaps crypto is not digital gold, but digital Benjamins — the $100 bills that play a crucial role in global criminal activities,” Krugman wrote.
ECB: “Bitcoin has failed to become a decentralized global digital currency”
The European Central Bank (ECB), the body developing the EU's digital currency project (CBDC) — the digital euro, clearly does not rejoice at Bitcoin's success in 2024.
In October, ECB Payment Director Ulrich Bindseil and advisor Jürgen Schaaf published a study warning about the “distribution consequences of Bitcoin.”
In the study, they called on those who do not own BTC to advocate for building legal regulations against Bitcoin. They argued that early Bitcoin holders “exploit” later buyers by selling BTC at higher prices.
When the first Bitcoin ETF began trading in the US in early 2024, Bindseil and Schaaf continued to criticize Bitcoin. They argued:
“Bitcoin has failed in its promise to become a decentralized global digital currency. Instead, it has become a tool for illegal transactions. The recent approval of the ETF does not change the fact that Bitcoin is unsuitable as a means of payment or investment.”
In November 2022, Bindseil and Schaaf wrote a paper titled “The Final Battle of Bitcoin” for the ECB, in which they argued that Bitcoin is “rarely used for legal transactions.”
While criticizing Bitcoin, Bindseil and Schaaf often praised the potential of a European CBDC.
In 2020, Bindseil described CBDCs like the yet-to-be-launched digital euro of the ECB as “the safest payment medium,” and stated:
“The digital euro will change the game as it means the ECB will directly manage currency payments […] The credibility of the payment system then depends on trust in the ECB and no longer on banks or the financial system.”
Jamie Dimon: “I call it a pet rock”
Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the US, seems to remain one of the biggest skeptics about Bitcoin in 2024, although JPMorgan is actively participating in spot Bitcoin ETFs.
As a long-time critic of Bitcoin, Dimon stated he was tired of talking about Bitcoin in early 2024, claiming he didn't care about this cryptocurrency even as spot Bitcoin ETFs made a historic debut on January 11.
“This is the last time I will talk about this with CNBC, God help me,” Dimon said, calling Bitcoin a “pet rock.”
CEO of JPMorgan, Jamie Dimon
It is unclear whether Dimon has changed his mind about Bitcoin after this cryptocurrency rose to new highs following Donald Trump's election victory.
In July, Trump — sometimes referred to as “America's first Bitcoin president” — reportedly revealed that the CEO of JPMorgan “changed his mind” about Bitcoin. However, since January, Dimon has kept his promise not to speak publicly about cryptocurrencies.
In November, Reuters reported that Dimon had no plans to join Trump's administration despite questions about whether he would accept a senior role in government after the election.
Rafi Farber: “When you buy Bitcoin, you are simply spreading US inflation”
Rafi Farber, publisher of the End Game Investor market service specializing in gold, may be one of the youngest critics of Bitcoin.
Farber's skeptical view of Bitcoin stems from a perspective that money cannot be printed indefinitely without a currency collapse and that BTC contributes to more money printing as its price rises.
This financial journalist publicly admitted that he was unhappy with the high price of Bitcoin when measured in gold in a blog post on December 5. However, he still bets that Bitcoin will not survive through a stressful dollar banking crisis.
End Game Investor publisher, Rafi Farber | Source: YouTube
In November, Farber went on his YouTube channel to discuss the connection between Bitcoin, Tether (USDT), and the US Treasury.
“Tether is backed by the US Treasury, which protects the US dollar, the currency you can exchange Tether for, used to buy Bitcoin, which is backed by Tether, which is backed by the US Treasury, which protects the US dollar, and so on,” Farber said. He added:
“This is a meaningless financial vortex spinning in the air, and when you buy gold and silver, you are taking money out of that vortex. When you buy Bitcoin, you are simply stimulating the price of the Treasury and spreading US inflation, continuing the power of the 'deep state.'”
Despite his skeptical view, Farber does not rule out the possibility of changing his mind about Bitcoin someday, but he needs to see how it withstands a global financial crisis. He stated:
“When that happens, if Bitcoin can maintain stability in terms of ounces of gold — not in terms of dollars, I don't care about dollars — then I will admit that Bitcoin is a viable gold derivative contract, and therefore not money, but a viable derivative contract of money, usable in trade.”
“I guess I don't think that will happen,” he said, implying that Bitcoin's value has dropped from 37.5 ounces of gold to around 10 ounces during the previous Bitcoin downturn.
“I think the next collapse of Bitcoin measured in gold will be worse than that. We will soon know when bank reserves drop below $3 trillion; this will happen soon,” Farber predicted.
https://tapchibitcoin.io/5-nha-chi-trich-bitcoin-khong-bi-anh-huong-boi-moc-100-000-usd.html
