Kinesis CEO hits back at BlackRock’s Gold and Bitcoin comparison

The CEO of Kinesis, a monetary system that is based 1:1 on physical gold and silver, has knocked back recent comments from investment firm BlackRock after it said Bitcoin would replace gold as the new safe haven asset.

Traditionally, gold has been seen as a global asset that is a hedge against the traditional financial system.

However, since the inception and proliferation of Bitcoin, opinions are beginning to be swayed with Bitcoin eclipsing its all-time high of $20,000 this year.

In response to BlackRock’s comments, Kinesis CEO Tom Coughlin, said: “For some time, a debate has been raging; will Bitcoin replace gold as the new safe haven? The standard riposte to this is that is has no intrinsic value and is therefore too volatile. And, whilst true, this misses the point.

“People argue Bitcoin is easier to transact. Recently, Rick Rieder from BlackRock suggested to CNBC that Bitcoin could replace gold because “it’s so much more functional than passing a bar of gold around”. But that’s not how gold transactions work anymore. Through the very same blockchain technology that Bitcoin champions, you can allocate and exchange physical gold and silver.

“Investors may be looking to hedge inflation and bitcoin bull runs may be tempting, but gold is the only guarantee of security in the long run, and comparing bitcoin with gold will allure investors into a false sense of security. After all, when bitcoin dropped in 2017 everyone ditched it. The two are not comparable and gold will remain the only truly safe store of value.”

Bitcoin is currently trading at $19,230 while gold is down at $1,840 having slumped by 10% since August.

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