Mark Cuban sees bitcoin as better than gold, likes Ethereum

April
2, 2021

4 min read

This story originally appeared on ValueWalk

Billionaire investor Mark Cuban remains bullish on the future of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, often comparing blockchain technology to the internet’s earliest days. He discussed his cryptocurrency portfolio on a recent episode of The Delphi Podcast.

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Currently, Cuban’s cryptocurrency portfolio consists of 60% bitcoin and 30% Ethereum. The remaining 10% of the portfolio consists of other digital currencies.

Mark Cuban on bitcoin

Cuban likes bitcoin and Ethereum for different reasons. He disagrees with those who said bitcoin is a currency because he doesn’t think it will work. However, he does see it as a store of value and a better alternative to gold. Cuban believes bitcoin will continue to be a better alternative to gold, which is why he bought some and never sold it.

The owner of the Dallas Mavericks also likes Ethereum, but it’s for a very different reason than why he likes bitcoin. He thinks ether is the closest coin to being a digital currency because of the smart contracts that run on the Ethereum blockchain. CNBC explains that smart contracts are collections of code that follow certain rules while running on the blockchain.

Cuban said smart contracts changed everything by creating decentralized finance and nonfungible tokens. He added that the technology is why he is excited about cryptocurrency and why he thinks it is “a lot like the internet.”

The billionaire investor also believes Ethereum can be adapted over time because developers can improve its capabilities, which makes it more life-like. Cuban wishes he had bought some Ethereum sooner, but he started purchasing it four years ago because he thinks it is the closest to a true currency.

Cuban bought Dogecoin too

He didn’t discuss any of the other cryptocurrencies he owns as the other 10% of his portfolio. However, he did say that there aren’t any that he’s “just all in on, other than bitcoin and Ethereum” as being an equivalent investment.

In February, he did purchase a small amount of dogecoin for his 11-year-old son. Dogecoin was started as a joke, and Cuban said when he bought some, it was meant to be “fun and educational” for his son while also enabling him to learn more about cryptocurrency.

Dogecoin has received a boost recently from Tesla CEO Elon Musk‘s tweets. When he initially started tweeting about the cryptocurrency, his tweets were meant to have been a joke, but that appears to have changed.

His most recent tweet about dogecoin proclaimed that SpaceX would “put a literal Dogecoin on the literal moon.” Some questioned whether that was a joke because he posted the tweet on April Fool’s Day, but CNBC space reporter Michael Sheetz took him seriously because the company’s first payload into orbit was a wheel of cheese.

The drama of cryptocurrency

As time has gone on, the cryptocurrency space has been marked with drama, from bitcoin’s soaring price to the jokes surrounding the creation of dogecoin. More and more institutional investors have adopted the cryptocurrency, and some traditional investment banks are allowing their investors to buy some. Chipotle Mexican Grill even started a contest offering customers a chance to win $200,000 worth of bitcoin and free burritos to celebrate National Burrito Day.

Now the Youa Group is putting the drama of cryptocurrency to the small screen with a TV series called Pumping Time. The series will include some special episodes lasting up to 100 minutes and many regular episodes lasting up to 30 minutes.

It will also include some theatrical presentations. The series will include a variety of real-life situations involving cryptocurrency, including top cryptocurrency exchanges and funds. Well-known CEOs and celebrities in the crypto world will make cameo appearances. The series will also dive into questionable crypto tactics to teach the public about potential risks.