TL;DR
- Robert Kiyosaki criticized Warren Buffett’s view that Bitcoin is “rat poison” or mere speculation.
- Kiyosaki classifies BTC as “People’s Money,” contrasting it with the “Fake Money” of the Fed and Wall Street.
- The “Rich Dad” author rejects Bitcoin ETFs, calling them “fake paper assets” and “counterfeit money.”
The debate over the value of Bitcoin has been revived by the author of “Rich Dad, Poor Dad,” Robert Kiyosaki, who has challenged legendary investor Warren Buffett. This Monday, Kiyosaki, in a lengthy post, addressed the historical skepticism of the Berkshire Hathaway CEO, who calls Bitcoin “probably rat poison squared” and a speculative asset that “doesn’t produce anything.”
Kiyosaki recalled Buffett’s stance and wrote: “WARREN BUFFET criticizes BITCOIN… assures it is not investment… it is speculation… i.e., gambling.” Although he accepted that “from his worldview, he may be right,” Kiyosaki quickly went on the offensive.
He questioned the safety of the traditional assets that Buffett champions, asking: “Doesn’t WB know that stocks crash, real estate crashes, and US govt Bonds the ‘safest’ investments in the world are at present being ‘dumped’ by the Japanese and Chinese Central Banks?”.
The author argues that his investment in Bitcoin, Ethereum, gold, and silver is based on a fundamental reason: distrust. “I do not trust the Federal Reserve Bank, US Treasury, or Wall Street. Apparently, Buffet does.”
“People’s Money” vs. “Fake Money”
His classification of money is Kiyosaki’s main defense. “I classify real gold and silver as ‘God’s Money’. I classify Bitcoin, Ethereum and crypto as ‘People’s Money’. I classify Fed, US Government, and Wall Street money as ‘Fake Money’,” he wrote.
In that context, Kiyosaki defends Bitcoin from Buffett, arguing that he invests in BTC and ETH “knowing they can boom and bust, because the Fed, the US Treasury, nor Buffet can produce Bitcoin or crypto.”
Kiyosaki also launched his offensive against the popular Bitcoin ETFs, aligning them with “fake money.” “I will never invest in gold, silver, or Bitcoin ETFs…. Fake gold, silver, and Bitcoin…. Wall Street or Buffet’s money,” he stated. He called ETFs and REITs “printed money….aka ‘counterfeit money,’” reiterating his famous phrase that “savers are losers” in a system of “infinitamente printed” money.
While the philosophical debate continues, Bitcoin was trading near $95,598, multiples above its value when Buffett made his most dismissive comments in 2022.
