Michael Saylor, executive chairman of MicroStrategy, again captured the public’s imagination with his level of conviction in Bitcoin as “the best asset the world” has ever seen — and rebuffed any notion that there could be a number two.
Saylor calls Berkshire Hathaway a pre-Bitcoin store of value
On May 3, Saylor compared Berkshire Hathaway, the investment firm led by Warren Buffett, with a prehistoric form of Bitcoin. “Berkshire Hathaway is 20th-century Bitcoin,” he said in a post on X.
The dominant store of value in the 20th century was holding a share of a company that has factories, pays dividends, and employs thousands of people; the dominant store of value in the 21st century is an encrypted block of code that represents a proof of work.
The billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who helped transform Berkshire Hathaway into a worldwide investment powerhouse, is leaving his position at year-end, but his dislike of Bitcoin will probably remain evident at the company.
Saylor’s comment carries extra heft because Buffett has been openly critical of cryptocurrencies for years.
The 93-year-old investor, still the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, has famously described Bitcoin as “rat poison squared” and a “gambling device,” indicating a glaring ideological difference with digital assets, which is not shared by Saylor in his alternative vision of a superior monetary network, as per CoinDesk.
Saylor says, 'no second best' to Bitcoin
Interestingly, just two days later, on May 5, Saylor, speaking on the Bitwise podcast, reiterated his hyper conviction in Bitcoin.
When he was asked what he thinks the most excellent asset in the world is, Saylor declared without hesitation, “Bitcoin.” When asked about the next best asset, he reiterated, "There's no second best."