Financial analyst Gary Shilling has called bitcoin a ‘black box’ and that he won’t be investing in the digital currency.
President of A. Gary Shilling & Company, Shilling claims that the digital currency is ‘too opaque and complicated for him to invest’ in.
In a video on Business Insider, Shilling said of bitcoin that:
It’s a black box and I’m not a believer in black boxes.
He explained that it was while at a cocktail party when he met up with a West Coast friend who, Shilling claims, has made a lot of money from the currency, that he started asking about Satoshi Nakamoto. For Shilling it appears that a lack of knowing the exact identity of who was behind the idea that is bothering him.
He said:
I’m just very suspicious of things that are not transparent. If I can’t understand it, I don’t want to invest in it.
Shilling is the latest bitcoin critic to emerge, joining his name to a growing list.
In September, Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, took a shot at the cryptocurrency by calling it ‘a fraud.’ He later followed that up with fresh comments, claiming that it was ‘worth nothing.’
Taking a more neutral stance is James Gorman, CEO of Morgan Stanley. Following Dimon’s remarks, Gorman said that bitcoin was ‘more than just a fad.’ He believes that the concept is interesting because of the ‘privacy protections’ it provides people and what it ‘says to the central banking system.’
Additionally, at the end of last month, Christine Lagarde, the director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said that ‘it would not be wise to dismiss virtual currencies.’ Speaking at a conference in London, Lagarde she said that cryptocurrencies would give traditional government-issued currencies ‘a run for their money.’
In many ways, virtual currencies might just give existing currencies and monetary policy a run for their money. The best response by central bankers is to continue running effective monetary policy, while being open to fresh ideas and new demands, as economies evolve.