The Crypto Skeptic Warren Buffett Finally Steps Back From Berkshire

One of finance’s most vocal digital asset critics is stepping aside from active leadership. Warren Buffett, who has spent decades dismissing cryptocurrency with colorful language, officially relinquished his CEO position at Berkshire Hathaway, handing operational control to Greg Abel while assuming the chairman role. The 94-year-old investor’s departure marks a significant turning point, as his skepticism toward crypto became increasingly prominent during his later tenure leading the $1 trillion conglomerate through six decades of transformational growth.

Buffett’s legendary quotes on Bitcoin and the broader crypto landscape have become defining statements about his investment philosophy—one rooted entirely in tangible, productive assets rather than speculative digital holdings. His relationship with the crypto world tells a story of unwavering conviction against assets he viewed as fundamentally lacking intrinsic value.

From “Rat Poison” To The Infamous $25 Benchmark

The investor’s most quoted critique came during Berkshire Hathaway’s 2018 shareholder meeting in Omaha, where he intensified his earlier 2014 condemnation of Bitcoin. At that 2018 gathering, Buffett declared the cryptocurrency “probably rat poison squared,” amplifying his original “rat poison” characterization. The timing was notable—Bitcoin was trading around $9,000 at that moment, recovering from a precipitous drop from nearly $20,000 months prior.

However, Buffett’s most memorable statement about digital assets emerged four years later. During the 2022 shareholder meeting, he posed a hypothetical scenario to tens of thousands of attending investors: he wouldn’t accept ownership of every Bitcoin in existence if offered for just $25. His reasoning was clear and direct—unlike farmland or apartment buildings that generate income, cryptocurrency produces nothing. Holding up a $20 bill as he spoke, Buffett emphasized that assets require productive utility: “If you told me you owned all of the Bitcoin in the world and you offered it to me for $25, I wouldn’t take it because what would I do with it? I’d have to sell it back to you one way or another. It isn’t going to do anything.”

Charlie Munger’s Equally Unsparing Assessment

Buffett wasn’t alone in his harsh stance—his late business partner Charlie Munger matched his skepticism with equally strong rhetoric. During Berkshire’s 2021 annual gathering, Munger branded Bitcoin as “disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization.” Years later, in a 2022 Wall Street Journal interview, he elaborated on why Berkshire deliberately avoided the entire crypto sector, describing the phenomenon as something he was “proud” Berkshire had sidestepped. Munger’s language grew even more pointed in subsequent interviews, characterizing cryptocurrency as a “turd” and comparing its promotion to spreading disease.

Building An Empire On Productive Enterprise

Buffett’s departure comes after transforming Berkshire from a struggling textile operation he began acquiring in 1962 for $7.60 per share into a diversified powerhouse with Class A shares trading above $750,000. His personal fortune, accumulated almost entirely through Berkshire holdings, reaches approximately $150 billion even after directing over $60 billion to charitable causes across two decades. This track record of building genuine, income-producing enterprises defines his investment worldview—a philosophy that stands in complete opposition to speculative digital assets without underlying cash flow generation.

His retirement underscores a generational shift in how the investment world approaches cryptocurrency, with Buffett’s consistent, decades-long skepticism serving as a counterpoint to the growing mainstream adoption of digital assets that accelerated throughout the 2020s.