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Jamie Dimon calls bitcoin 'worthless' and questions its 21 million supply cap

Oct 12, 2021, 11:57 IST
Business Insider
Mike Blake/Reuters
  • Jamie Dimon said he believes bitcoin is "worthless."
  • The CEO of JPMorgan said on Monday that if his clients want access to bitcoin, "we can give them legitimate, as clean as possible access."
  • Dimon also questioned the 21 million fixed supply of bitcoin at the Institute of International Finance event.
  • Sign up here for our daily newsletter, 10 Things Before the Opening Bell.
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JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon still isn't buying into the hype surrounding bitcoin, saying at an event on Monday that he believes the popular cryptocurrency is "worthless."



But Dimon's skepticism hasn't stopped his his bank from doing business with clients that want access to the cryptocurrency.

"We can't custody it [bitcoin], but we can give [clients] legitimate, as clean as possible access," Dimon said at the Institute of International Finance event on Monday.

While Dimon may not believe in the value of bitcoin, investors have been pouring in over the last few weeks, lending the cryptocurrency a $1.1 trillion valuation as of Monday.

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Part of Dimon's skepticism is around supply, and whether the total number of bitcoins that can exist is in fact capped at 21 million. The finite supply is often cited as a reason to be bullish on bitcoin, as no more can be created once all the coins are mined in about 100 years. This is a common argument for bitcoin's appeal as an inflation hedge.

"I'll just challenge the group to one other thing. How do you know it ends at 21 million [bitcoins]? You all read algorithms? You guys all believe that? I don't know, I've always been a skeptic of stuff like that," Dimon said, according to Brian Cheung of Yahoo Finance.

Dimon rightly noted that while his disbelief in bitcoin may be at odds with many in the market, including JPMorgan's customers (and even some of its employees), that's what makes a market. "Our clients are adults, they disagree, that's what makes markets," Dimon said.

It should come as no surprise to investors that Dimon is bearish on bitcoin, having previously expressed that he expects regulation to hit the crypto sector especially hard following ransomware attack payments enabled by the digital currencies.

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