Cryptocurrency is not going anywhere – in fact, it is expected to leap forward in the years to come, says tech entrepreneur and co-founder of Finder.com Fred Schebesta.
“I am a big believer in Bitcoin,” he says. “I think it’s like digital gold. I think it will go on forever. “
In a recently published interview, recorded on March 2, Schebesta rejects pessimists who say that cryptocurrency is a passing fashion, noting that the price of Bitcoin (BTC-USD) has remained stable recently.
“Bitcoin has been called dead for 10 years now,” he says. “It seems to be going on. You know, I think the price holds up pretty well throughout that too. “
On Thursday afternoon, the price of Bitcoin stood at $ 9,115, marking an increase of 20.7% in the past three months, while the S&P 500 fell 3.5% during this period. Bitcoin surged early this year despite fears of coronaviruses.
“These geopolitical events, including the coronavirus and geopolitical tensions, really improve the use case,” Tom Tom, managing partner of Fundstrat Global Advisors, told Yahoo Finance on YFi PM last month.
Critics of the cryptocurrency, such as Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A, BRK-B), argue that it has no value as a trading tool or source of production. The cryptocurrency “will come to a bad end,” Buffett told CNBC in 2018.
In this sense, Andy Serwer, editor in chief of Yahoo Finance, asked Schebesta: “I know it’s of great interest to you, but isn’t crypto finished, man?”
“Crypto is at the start,” says Schebesta, 38, who – in addition to his role at Finder.com – is the CEO of a blockchain company called HiveEx. “I actually think it takes another five years to cook.”
HiveEx, which Schebesta co-founded in 2018, helps wealthy traders buy or sell large amounts of cryptocurrency, according to its website. Stock transfers, for example, offer an important business opportunity for the blockchain, he said.
“The inventory run-off right now is a small-to-large disaster when it comes to paper and all that stuff,” he says. “So this is where the blockchain does so well.”
Schebesta made the remarks in a conversation that aired in an episode of Yahoo Finance “Influencers with Andy Serwer”, a series of weekly interviews with leaders in business, politics and entertainment.
In 2006, at 26, Schebesta founded Finder.com, a price comparison website that now operates in 83 countries and employs 310 people full time, says Schebesta. Last October, the Australian Financial Review ranked Schebesta – who lives in Sydney – 22nd among Australians under 40, with a net worth of $ 193 million.
Schebesta compared the current state of cryptocurrency to the early days of the Internet.
“We had to wait until Hotmail with e-mail made the Internet interesting for most people,” he says. “Or, you know, when the data really got pretty fast on your phone.”
“It just takes time for these technologies,” he adds. “It’s the same with blockchain technologies … it’s just going to take a little time to cook.”
Still, a cryptocurrency firm faced a setback this week. The Information reported on Tuesday that Facebook (FB) would cut plans for its Libra cryptocurrency after the company caught the attention of lawmakers and the public.
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