TL;DR
- Gold advocate Peter Schiff labeled Bitcoin a “scam” after its 30% pullback, while calling a 14% silver drop a buying opportunity.
- Critics called his logic inconsistent, noting both assets fell due to similar market forces (margin hikes, liquidations).
- The debate highlights a deep ideological and performance split between traditional metals and crypto investors.
Peter Schiff reignited the metals-versus-crypto feud with an argument many call incoherent. After a 14% slide in silver on December 29 — from $84 to $72 — he urged buying. In the same breath, he pointed to a 30% Bitcoin pullback from its high as proof of a “scam.” Critics flagged the mismatch across selloffs driven by similar market forces.
The spark came from his note on lower silver miners and fresh entry points. In the thread, Schiff attacked Strategy’s BTC accumulation, saying an average price near $75,000 yielded 16% over five years, a return he called poor. Pushback arrived fast.
Shanaka Anslem Perera challenged the reasoning: margin hikes, forced liquidations, and leveraged washouts hit both assets. “Explain the logic where identical mechanics make silver ‘cheap’ and Bitcoin ‘worthless,’” he wrote. He listed prior BTC calls he says failed and pointed to a commercial tilt: Schiff’s metal business accepts BTC, and controversy fuels reach.
Willy Woo added a separate critique, branding the Strategy math as “scam maths” for ignoring the time basis of buys. He argued that most of the $75,000 cost base came in the last two years, not five, which alters return math. Debate moved from arithmetic to consistency of standards.
Reports framed gold and silver with 75% and 172% gains in 2025, while Bitcoin headed toward a modest annual loss. Divergent performance drove correlation between metals and crypto to multi-year lows. Gold advocates leaned on a tangible-supply refuge story; crypto voices cited a digital bearer-asset with deep liquidity and 24/7 rails.
Metals vs. crypto: the core dispute
The clash goes well beyond one tweet. A week earlier, with gold over $4,400, Schiff ran a poll: first to hit — $5,000 for gold or $50,000 for BTC on the downside? Under 20% picked the crypto drop. The vote revealed polarization, not clarity. Meanwhile, analysts on both sides pressed for symmetric criteria across assets when margins, leverage, and liquidations drive a move.
Cycle watchers noted prior BTC patterns where rallies followed metal strength. Supporters like Fred Krueger argued for long-run superiority rooted in programmed scarcity and global liquidity. Others, including Daniel Tschinkel, favored metal stability during macro stress, citing a long record and broad acceptance.
