Charlie Munger: Bitcoin is 'poison' and the government needs to 'step on it hard'

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Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRK-A, BRK-B) vice chairman, Charlie Munger, ripped into bitcoin.

“I never considered for one second having anything to do with [bitcoin],” Munger, 94, spoke at the Daily Journal’s (DJCO) annual meeting in Los Angeles. “I detested it the minute it had been raised. The more popular it got, the more I hated it.”

He said that “everyone wants easy money.” He added that he “hopes to god” his family doesn’t grow up buying things like bitcoin.

“It’s just disgusting that people have been taken in by this,” he said.

Munger thinks that there’s a future where a different payment system could happen, pointing to China’s WeChat as an example.

Describing bitcoin as a “noxious poison,” he called for more regulation.

“Our more relaxed approach is wrong. The right answer is to step on it hard. It’s the government’s job.”

Charlie Munger (Jonathan Alcorn | Bloomberg | Getty Images)
Charlie Munger (Jonathan Alcorn | Bloomberg | Getty Images)

Julia La Roche is a finance reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter.