© Reuters
Investing.com – Steve Eisman, the hedge fund manager and subject of Michael Lewis’ book “The Big Short,” criticized the concept of as a currency on Bloomberg’s Odd Lots podcast airing Monday.
“Why is the currency a currency?” asked Eisman. “It felt like it was obvious, but it’s not obvious to me.”
He also felt that the idea that bitcoin would behave as a hedge against the depreciation of other currencies was problematic, because it didn’t actually behave that way.
“The problem is that he actually did the opposite. So what was the point?” wondered Eisman.
Eisman went on to say that bitcoin’s large price swings, often 25% or more over a six-month period, make it an unreliable currency.
“You can’t have a currency that moves 25% every six months. What problem does that solve? Is there a problem with the currency? It’s not even a problem. Currency markets are the most liquid markets in the world,” he said.
The ‘Big Short’ star drove home the point by saying he doesn’t understand the point of owning bitcoin, other than in a purely speculative bit.
“I don’t understand what bitcoin solves, and I don’t understand the purpose of owning it, other than another form of speculation. I just don’t understand,” he said.