Jim Cramer of CNBC said on Tuesday that he owns some bitcoin and considers it one of several investment options instead of parking large sums of cash, which in today’s low-interest environment earns virtually zero.
“I’ve owned bitcoin. I’ve owned it for a while,” Cramer told Squawk Box. “It’s an alternative to a cash position, where you do absolutely nothing.”
“As a way to have a paste of things you should use your money with, that’s all there is to it. I think it’s almost irresponsible not to include bitcoin,” Cramer added, saying he also considers bitcoin as gold. as a store of value and protection against inflation.
The host of “Crazy Money” talked about his personal views on bitcoin while reacting to Tesla’s revelation on Monday that the electric car manufacturer has invested $ 1.5 billion in bitcoin and intends to accept it as a payment method.
Bitcoin rose to a record high of more than $ 48,000 early Tuesday before associating some of those gains as buying continued a day after Elon Musk’s Tesla announced its investment, the latest evidence of institutional interest for the largest cryptocurrency in the world.
“Bitcoin is exciting,” Cramer said. But he advised investors that it would be a good idea to protect positions in digital currency because it is so volatile and there are not many sellers at the moment.
Cramer called Bitcoin “a little bloated,” but pointed out that “there are a lot of people who say it could reach $ 100,000.”
One of those crypto investors who believe bitcoin could rise to these levels by the end of the year is Galaxy Digital founder Michael Novogratz, a former Fortress hedge fund manager.