In a new interview with Bloomberg, Bitcoin bull Mike Novogratz speaks out against billionaire buddies who are seemingly unaware of their massive fortunes.
“Ninety-seven percent of the people I know in my world are really, really fearful of [Elizabeth Warren]. They don’t like her, they’re worried about her, they think she’s anti-rich … It’s a little carried away…
You’re not victims, you’re the richest people in the world. How in God’s name do you feel like a victim?”
Novogratz, CEO of crypto merchant bank Galaxy Digital, advocates for the redistribution of wealth as a means of giving more people an opportunity to participate in wealth creation. And the way to do it, he says, is by using digital assets on wallets.
“Given that we have a world that’s in disequilibrium…we should redistribute. We need to redistribute.
In a perfect way, redistribute it all on a digital wallet – because I don’t think government actually spends money efficiently.”
As for a pivotal moment that could turn the tide for Bitcoin and spark a greater transfer of wealth, Novogratz says it hasn’t happened yet, but that companies like Fidelity are well-positioned to make it happen.
“The bulk of the money in this country still resides in older people’s brokerage accounts. The youth doesn’t have the money yet. The youth who love their phones and love Bitcoin don’t have the money…
And so, giving access to that bulk of money where the Fidelitys live — the most bullish thing that could happen would be for [CEO of Fidelity] Abby Johnson to say, ‘Hey, all my 26 million users can now buy Bitcoin on my platform. Hasn’t happened yet … but she’s a crypto believer.”
The hedge fund manager-turned-crypto investor who once ranked on Forbes’ list of billionaires, a status he apparently lost during the global financial meltdown in 2008, is also bullish on both Facebook’s Libra and Telegram’s TON, controversial platforms that are designed to support people who have limited or no access to traditional banking services.
Tweets Novogratz,
“Libra and telegram would be great for the crypto ecosystem and bullish $btc.”
But Novogratz says Facebook made a big mistake when it first introduced the Libra stablecoin project.
His comments came during an appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box.
“If Facebook and Libra had come out originally and said, ‘We’re building a global payments system,’ I think there would have been a lot less angst. But they came out and said they’re going to build this new currency, and everyone turned their hair on fire. It feels like they’re now pivoting.”
Responding to a question about whether China or Libra are threats to Bitcoin, Novogratz says,
“They’re actually additive to Bitcoin, because both what China is working on, a digital Renminbi, and what Libra is, which is going to be either a digital dollar or digital basket of currencies or some version of that, are payment systems – really are currencies – where Bitcoin is gold. Gold is not a threat to the dollar nor will Bitcoin be a threat to these payment currencies.”