Charlie Munger Calls Crypto a ‘Worthless, Dangerous, Dirty Sewer’

American businessman Charlie Munger launched a bitter attack on cryptocurrencies in a recent interview. He called virtual currencies “worthless” and urged people to avoid them at all costs, likening the crypto industry to a filthy cesspool.

“Crypto is an investment in nothing,” Munger told the Australian Financial Review. “I regard it as almost insane to buy this stuff or to trade in it.”

Berkshire Hathaway’s vice president stressed that just because something is scarce, it’s not a compelling reason to own it. Stocks, which represent pieces of real businesses and claim to their profits, are a better investment, he said.

Munger also targeted coin manufacturers and exchanges, vowing to buy crypto as it underpins the present monetary system.

“I think anybody that sells this stuff is either delusional or evil,” he said. “I’m not interested in undermining the national currencies of the world.”

During the AFR interview, Buffett’s business partner, who has previously labeled crypto a “venereal disease” and a tool for criminals, made another damning allegation.

Munger also spoke about a number of broader market issues. He stated that he pays little attention to macroeconomic trends, and instead focuses on investing his and Berkshire’s capital as efficiently as possible.

The investor described inflation as a recurring issue that he has lived through but suggested it would eventually render all of the world’s currencies worthless. “That’s my basic cynical view,” he said.

Munger also dismissed the recent stock market decline as nothing unusual, but he suggested that higher interest rates would have a significant impact on share prices and valuations.

He then predicted that the world would continue to rely on fossil fuels for a long time since natural gas is needed to produce nitrogen fertilizers used in agriculture. However, he also predicted that renewable energy resources would have a larger impact on global power generation.