Key Points
- Arthur Hayes, BitMEX co-founder, asserts Bitcoin’s superiority over gold as a safe-haven asset.
- Despite Bitcoin’s recent value drop, Hayes maintains a positive long-term outlook for the cryptocurrency.
Arthur Hayes, the co-founder and former CEO of BitMEX, has recently shed light on the value of Bitcoin as a safe-haven asset in the face of economic cycles.
Hayes, an avid Bitcoin supporter, has provided an analysis of historical economic cycles, dividing them into local cycles of inflation and wider global trends.
The Current Economic Cycle
Hayes believes that the current economic state is a local cycle, marked by significant geopolitical changes and monetary policy shifts.
He observes a transition from a unipolar world led by the US to a multipolar one, with emerging powers like China, Brazil, and Russia.
Hayes notes that governments are increasingly turning to financial repression and extensive money printing to fund deficits, negatively impacting asset valuation and wealth preservation.
Bitcoin Versus Gold
In these circumstances, Hayes argues that Bitcoin outperforms traditional assets like gold.
Bitcoin’s ledger is maintained through a cryptographic blockchain, facilitating quick transactions, while gold’s ledger is maintained by nature, making its physical transfer slower.
This fundamental difference, according to Hayes, makes Bitcoin a more appealing safe-haven asset than gold in a local cycle.
He states, “Bitcoin is superior, whereas gold is inferior. That is why Bitcoin stole some of gold’s thunder from 2009 until the present.”
Despite the recent significant drop in Bitcoin’s price, which has raised concerns among investors and market observers, Hayes remains optimistic about the cryptocurrency’s long-term potential.
He notes that the ongoing loose fiscal and monetary policies will continue to debase fiat currencies, reinforcing his belief in Bitcoin as a means of wealth preservation.
Hayes, a well-known Bitcoin advocate, regards it as his primary investment and describes BTC as “money and only money”. He also acknowledges the innovations in Ethereum and recognizes Ether as a commodity that powers the Ethereum network.
