Entrepreneur and venture capitalist Peter Thiel said that the price of bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies shows that inflation concerns are real. The billionaire investor says that inflation is in a crisis moment and criticized the U.S. Federal Reserve.
Billionaire venture capitalist Peter Thiel, who co-founded PayPal and Palantir Technologies, says that cryptocurrency prices are proving the concerns surrounding inflation. Thiel was speaking at a conservative conference on Oct 31, offering thoughts on rising inflation and the response by the U.S. government.
He wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies at the current price, saying that he’s “not sure that one should aggressively buy.” However, he believes that the price itself is an indication of a “crisis moment” and that he regretted not buying more of bitcoin earlier.
Much of Thiel’s remarks had to do with criticizing the Federal Reserve for its handling of the economy. He said that the central banking system did not acknowledge the significance of the situation and that its decision to print money would not have an inflation impact.
The U.S. Federal Reserve has printed trillions of dollars in the past few years, which has been heavily commented on. In addition to this, the agency’s balance sheet has been growing enormously, with more assets purchased in 2020 than it did during the Great Recession. This has also engendered worry about inflation.
There have been some concerns stated in the past about the Federal Reserve’s decisions sparking negative interest rates. When this occurs, borrowers are credited interest, as opposed to paying interest on the borrowed sum. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell dismissed the idea of negative interest rates last year.
Cryptocurrencies a bulwark against inflation
Bitcoin itself has a lower inflation rate than any other fiat currency and is generally considered a good hedge. Multiple companies have begun adding the asset to their holdings for this very reason.
Among the most well-known of these is MicroStrategy, which is carrying the banner for major companies investing in the cryptocurrency. CEO Michael Saylor has likened bitcoin to digital gold and said that it is a better option than the precious metal itself.
Meanwhile, Thiel’s own company, Palantir, is considering a foray into bitcoin by adding the asset to its balance sheets. The company has already begun accepting bitcoin as payment from clients, which follows his other companies, PayPal and Venmo, in doing the same.
