When asked whether or not the cryptocurrency could become a “reliable financial instrument”, the Dallas Mavericks owner gave two differing responses. “Not a chance”, he wrote at first. Subsequently, he added, “It is a collectible. If you consider art or gold a viable stable financial asset, then yes. It can be.”
One of the most outspoken critics of Bitcoin has delivered mixed messages about its reliability as a financial asset.
In comments to Forbes published on Dec. 10, Mark Cuban appeared to contradict himself on Bitcoin’s overall utility.
Fiat fails to comfort Bitcoin deniers
While Cuban complained that investors were put off Bitcoin due to the difficulty in understanding how it works, the ambiguity of the comments highlighted what has become a common problem for Bitcoin skeptics – explaining why they are skeptical.
In a telling example last year, infamous naysayer Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan, told a Cointelegraph reporter that he was “not a skeptic” of Bitcoin when pushed to explain his previous claim it was a fraud.
Cuban appeared to set Bitcoin and gold on an unequal footing with fiat currency, something which Bitcoin proponents conversely deny.
As Cointelegraph often notes, figures such as Saifedean Ammous, author of “The Bitcoin Standard”, argue that it is Bitcoin’s limited supply which is among its biggest assets. Fiat, by contrast, faces unlimited manipulation and inflation, destroying value for those who hold or “collect” it.
Cuban has a history of rubbishing Bitcoin, in September suggesting he would prefer bananas over Bitcoin holdings.
Bitcoin News Summary – July 23, 2019
Major US bank, Wells Fargo, will no longer allow its customers to purchase Bitcoin with their own funds. Specifically, the bank responded to a customer complaint on Twitter that ‘they do not allow transactions involving cryptocurrency.’ Last year, Wells Fargo banned the purchase of cryptocurrencies using its credit cards, claiming they are too risky of an asset. Wells Fargo’s policy runs contrary to the trend of increasing crypto acceptance and integration by banks.
Leading digital currency asset manager, Grayscale reported that its assets under management nearly tripled from $1 billion to $2.7 billion due to the increase in crypto prices in the second quarter of this year. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust was up 178%. The asset manager also reports strong inflows into its funds, signaling strong institutional demand for crypto investment.
Steve Wozniak, famous for co-founding Apple, announced his involvement with a Maltese blockchain startup. The new company, Efforce, is focused on using blockchain technology to improve electrical efficiency. Wozniak has made supportive statements in the past regarding Bitcoin.
And finally, America’s Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating crypto exchange giant, BitMEX, for allowing US citizens to trade. Popular crypto trader, Tone Vays, was banned from trading on BitMEX due to his US citizenship but the CFTC suspects other Americans may be trading on the site by disguising their US IP addresses. $85 million was reportedly withdrawn from BitMEX after reports of the investigation.
