Bill Gates has never shied away from his distaste for cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Previously, the Microsoft co-founder shared his sentiments towards cryptocurrency, saying it held no real value. He once again echoed those sentiments while speaking at a TechCrunch talk to discuss climate change on Tuesday.
Gates described the digital asset trends as “100% based on greater fool theory,” alluding to the idea that investors can generate revenue on worthless or overvalued assets provided that people are willing to make higher bids.
Cryptocurrencies were not the only thing Gates took a swipe at as he also mocked the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs, even joking that “expensive digital images of monkeys” would “improve the world immensely.”
NFTs are digital crypto-collectibles that can’t be exchanged for one another and often get the hype of being able to prove ownership over digital assets like digital art, music, or video clips from sports.
Despite the number of people touting NFTs as something worth getting, critics have a harsher perspective of the assets, saying they are overhyped and have the potential to harm the environment due to the energy-intensive nature of cryptocurrencies.
The majority of NFTs are built on the network behind Ethereum, the second top cryptocurrency in the market.
The Microsoft co-founder said he was “not long or short” crypto and preferred old-fashioned investing – particularly in something valuable.
“I’m used to asset classes, like a farm where they have output, or like a company where they make products,” Gates explained.
Bill Gates’ comments follow the crypto market crash, bringing down Bitcoin from an all-time high of $69,000 in November last year.
Since then, the top cryptocurrency has lost two-thirds of its value, dropping below $23,000 on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, crypto exchange Coinbase recently announced it would be laying off 18% of its employees with the crypto market crumbling.
Bill Gates previously shared his doubts about cryptocurrency in a 2021 interview with Bloomberg, saying that while Elon Musk had the resources to invest, others did not have the same luxuries.
Read also: Bitcoin Continues Its Downward Spiral, Dropping to $24k
