NEWS

HODLer of a bygone era, Peter Schiff has argued that retail investors are getting squeezed by whales’ tactics on the cryptocurrency markets.

In a tweet posted on Oct. 29, Schiff — a diehard gold proponent — said:

“Bitcoin hodlers won’t sell as they believe they’ll get rich when #Bitcoin moons. Bitcoin whales get rich by selling now to realize their paper gains before a market crash wipes them out. The whales must make sure the hodlers don’t lose faith and cash out so that they can cash in!”

Gold recent tumble

Schiff’s comments come after a week of dazzling market gains for the top cryptocurrency, with Bitcoin (BTC) posting its highest intraday gain — at 42% — since 2011.

Against gold, Bitcoin was up by over 30% on Oct. 26, prior to Schiff’s remarks.

Twitter respondents retorted that the pattern was hardly unique to digital asset classes; those less generous sarcastically quipped that for Schiff, only gold is immune to such trading gambits.

On Oct. 29, gold notably fell to a one-week low amid buoyant investor sentiment in the wider markets, with many hopeful of a United States-China trade deal.

A hawkish interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve could, however, be bullish for the precious metal, with lower rates reducing opportunity costs for holders.

A store of value for the digital era

As reported, Schiff has been resoundingly and consistently bearish in his forecasts for Bitcoin.

Mounting recognition of the latter as a safe-haven asset has contributed to its moniker as “digital gold” and the cryptocurrency has more frequently fallen into close-step correlation with physical gold at several points in recent market cycles.

Industry commentators point to the increasingly fraught issue of central bank policy as bullish “rocket fuel” for Bitcoin’s price performance.

By Marie Huillet

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