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Bill Gates Says He's 'Neutral' on Bitcoin

Gates has previously criticized cryptocurrencies and said he'd short bitcoin "if there was an easy way to do it."

Updated Sep 14, 2021, 12:13 p.m. Published Feb 18, 2021, 3:25 p.m.

Bill Gates has said he has a "neutral view" on bitcoin, but does recognize the importance of bringing down the costs of moving money.

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In an interview with CNBC Thursday, Gates said, "I don't own bitcoin. I'm not short bitcoin."
The Microsoft co-founder said that digitizing money and bringing down transaction costs is "something the Gates Foundation does in developing countries."
The Foundation takes a focus on reversing charges and adding greater transparency, rather than protecting anonymity, he added.

Gates further pointed to the volatility of bitcoin driven by "mania" and the difficulty of predicting how prices will progress.
He previously said in May 2018 that he would short bitcoin "if there was an easy way to do it" and that he had been given a bitcoin as a birthday present but sold it shortly after.
Crypto enthusiasts were less than happy during a 2018 Reddit AMA when Gates claimed the anonymity of cryptocurrency had "caused deaths in a fairly direct way".

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