Schiff Dismisses Bitcoin as Gold’s Digital Imposter

• Gold is on an unprecedented bull run.
• Peter Schiff asserts that Bitcoin is stealing gold‘s spotlight.
• Schiff rants that Bitcoin will never measure up to gold.

As central banks shift toward stimulus measures , Bitcoin has roared back to life, recently soaring above $60,000. With Q4 on the horizon, this surge has reignited a newfound optimism among Bitcoiners.

Meanwhile, gold has steadily risen since late 2022, with gains accelerating in recent months, culminating in new all-time highs. Despite its strong performance, Euro Pacific Capital’s Peter Schiff argues that Bitcoin is unfairly stealing the spotlight from the precious metal.

Schiff: Bitcoin Is Useless

Despite gold reaching unprecedented levels recently, Schiff argued that this surge is happening unnoticed, as attention is being diverted to Bitcoin. He believes Bitcoin’s dominance in headlines and financial circles is undeserved.

In an interview with Market Sniper host Francis Hunt, Schiff argued that Bitcoin is no more “digital gold” than a jpeg of a hamburger is real food. “If you have a diet of digital food, you will starve to death,” he remarked, driving home his point about Bitcoin’s lack of real-world utility.

Schiff further argued that Bitcoin’s digital nature renders it ineffective in real-world industries like jewelry, medicine, and aerospace, where tangible physical properties are crucial.

Nonetheless, Bitcoin advocates argue that BTC’s value stems from its digital scarcity, emphasizing that only 21 million BTC will ever exist. They contend that this hard limit gives Bitcoin an advantage over gold, which faces a constantly inflating supply as new reserves are discovered.

Is Digital Scarcity a Myth?

Echoing Schiff’s sentiment, Hunt argued that Bitcoin’s digital scarcity is ultimately irrelevant because it stems from rules set by code. He asserted that code is forkable, creating numerous Bitcoin versions, which undermines the notion of BTC as a scarce asset.

Building on this, Schiff pointed out that while some crypto tokens may have a finite supply, numerous tokens with a finite supply dilute the idea of digital scarcity. 

In any case, Schiff asserted that Bitcoin’s supply should be considered 2.1 quadrillion satoshis, highlighting that it isn’t genuinely scarce.

“It doesn’t matter if you have 100,000,000 satoshis or just one; you can’t do anything with 100,000,000 of them,” Schiff stated.

Schiff first made this point public in 2021, arguing that the total number of satoshis must be factored into discussions about Bitcoin’s scarcity. 

However, Bitcoin advocates quickly pushed back against his claims, with Peter McCormack asserting that Schiff inadvertently proved Bitcoin’s superiority over gold by highlighting its divisibility.

Jimmy Song also responded by applying Schiff’s logic to gold, noting that each ounce contains an arbitrary quantity of approximately 3.36 x 10²⁷ atoms, which makes gold abundant in its own right.

On the Flipside

• Both gold and Bitcoin are benefiting from central bank stimulus.
• Historical precedents show that new technologies often face skepticism before gaining widespread acceptance.
• Schiff regrets not buying Bitcoin when it was under a dollar.

Why This Matters

While the Bitcoin versus gold debate rages on, savvy investors recognize that true financial resilience often lies in diversification, not dogma.

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