- The long-running, neverending debate between gold and Bitcoin just happened on another big stage.
- Michael Saylor and Frank Giustra went head to head on the preferred investment.
- The rise of Bitcoin and digital assets seems to be threatening gold and other traditional investments.
- Experts warn that pro-Bitcoin advocates are not completely honest about the risks.
From the inception of Bitcoin in 2009, it has been touted as the currency of the 21st century. Experts have always debated the relative methods of Bitcoin and gold, which has been an ancient store of value. Experts on either side of the coin always make points to try to swing investors into their camp.
Gold Vs. Bitcoin
Michael Saylor and Frank Giustra recently went head to head in a recent gold vs. Bitcoin debate on an episode of Stansberry Live.
Michael Saylor is an American entrepreneur, best-selling author, and the CEO of MicroStrategy, the first publicly listed company to convert a major part of its reserves to Bitcoin. He was arguing for the cryptocurrency and trying to convince Giustra to sell all his gold.
Frank Giustra is a Canadian businessman and financier responsible for creating many mining companies. He started the debate by saying that he came with an open mind but also wanted to react to previous wrong statements about gold.
Michael Saylor’s Views On Bitcoin
According to Saylor, money is energy that drives the world, and the history of money has always evolved from coins, notes, and other items. The current step of that evolution is digital money, so that’s the way to go.
Saylor argued that the traditional view that gold is the best store of value is false. Bitcoin is preferable as it sees over 350,000 transactions a day and stores value while providing security to everyone on the network, unlike gold.
He also claimed that Bitcoin is more valuable than gold because, in just 12 years, it has over $1 trillion in market capitalization, performing better than Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN).
Bitcoin is the currency of the future as the world has converted both pictures and paintings to digital displays, so currency becoming digital is the right way for world finance. Saylor argued that money is collapsing due to inflation, and it is impossible to distribute gold to five billion people, but Bitcoin can be divisible and distributed.
According to Saylor, gold should pass the torch to Bitcoin. Bitcoin has all the elements of a better asset than gold because it is divisible and can’t be counterfeited or confiscated. Finally, it is deflationary because there is only ever going to be 21 million Bitcoin.
On the Flipside
- Saylor’s view that Bitcoin can’t be confiscated like gold may be untrue in the long run due to radical government policies which may follow.
- Former presidential aspirant Ron Paul has warned against a potential government crackdown on cryptos.
- In addition, the high volatility of Bitcoin may make investors reject it as a store of value.
Frank Giustra’s Views On Gold
Giustra argued that gold is the better asset for many reasons. First of all, gold has a history as a major store of value for many years, so it’s the safest bet for investors.
The central banks of most countries are currently buying and storing more gold, supporting the claim that gold is still waxing stronger than ever before. Furthermore, whenever there is a storm, the world always turns to gold to save the situation.
Giustra asserted that Bitcoin isn’t safe from a government crackdown while all the $12 trillion currently stored in gold remains safe.