Anthony Scaramucci says the COVID-driven sell-off is a buying opportunity in stocks and crypto — and calls it a 'mini March of 2020'

• Anthony Scaramucci said Friday's brutal selloff is a buying opportunity for stocks and crypto.
• Stocks slumped as investors ran for cover after a new COVID-19 variant was detected in South Africa.

Friday's brutal market sell-off is a buying opportunity for both stocks and crypto assets, Anthony Scaramucci of investment firm SkyBridge Capital said on CNBC.

Global stocks and oil prices cratered Friday as investors ran for cover following the discovery of a new, highly mutated COVID-19 strain in South Africa, which has raised the prospect of further lockdowns and travel bans. The S&P 500 was last down 2%, while oil futures dropped more than 10%.

Scaramucci, who was briefly President Donald Trump's White House communications director, told CNBC's "Squawk Box" that the Federal Reserve is now less likely to tighten monetary policy as aggressively as it had planned.

"If the Fed is not tapering, this is a buying opportunity," he said, referring to the central bank cutting back on monthly asset purchases. "It's Black Friday, and things are on sale."

The Skybridge Capital boss added that he sees the situation as a "mini March of 2020." Markets saw a steep sell-off as coronavirus first hit the world economy in the spring of last year, after which stocks rose again.

Scaramucci, a long-time bitcoin bull, said the declines in crypto represented a good chance to scoop up digital assets on the cheap. Bitcoin was last down 7.9% at $54,391 on Coinbase, while ether was down 9.1% at $4,066.

"If you believe in the long-term fundamentals as we do, this is the time to be buying," he said.

"I just think this is a risk-off situation right now. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies being volatile, that's taking people out of the game. That's also washing out some of the leverage, which I think sets up a pretty nice first quarter."

A strong "buy-the-dip" mentality has set in among institutional investors and retail traders alike over the last year and a half.

Stocks suffered their biggest falls since 1987 in March 2020, but huge stimulus packages from governments and central banks have since helped set them soaring. The S&P 500 has roughly doubled from its March 2020 low.

However, the outlook clouded over on Friday as investors were left in the dark as to the infectiousness and lethality of the new coronavirus variant, known as B.1.1.259.

The UK has moved to curb air travel from the affected southern African countries, with the European Union likely to follow suit.

Investors are concerned that the variant could cause the re-imposition of lockdowns and mark the start of another recession for the global economy. Scientists are racing to find out more about the new strain, with few firm details as of yet.

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