Showing posts with label CNBC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CNBC. Show all posts

Thursday, May 3, 2018

Warren Buffett explains one thing people still don't understand about bitcoin

PHOTO: Warren Buffett said that bitcoin lacked intrinsic value. There is nothing that is producing anything.
"You're just hoping the next guy pays more. And you only feel you'll find the next guy to pay more if he thinks he's going to find someone that's going to pay more. You aren't investing when you do that, you're speculating. That's one kind of game. That is not investing."
Picture posted by Marie Huillet  on 28 April 2018
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https://cointelegraph.com/news/buying-bitcoin-is-not-investing-claims-oracle-of-omaha-warren-buffett


When it comes to bitcoin, billionaire investor Warren Buffett wants to make one thing clear: Unlike buying stocks, bonds or real estate, buying bitcoin is not an investment.

That's because it lacks intrinsic value, Buffett says.

"If you buy something like bitcoin or some cryptocurrency, you don't have anything that is producing anything," Buffett says in an interview with Yahoo Finance. "You're just hoping the next guy pays more. And you only feel you'll find the next guy to pay more if he thinks he's going to find someone that's going to pay more.

"You aren't investing when you do that, you're speculating."


Buffett says in an interview with Yahoo Finance.
PHOTO:  Buffett says in an interview with Yahoo Finance. "You're just hoping the next guy pays more. And you only feel you'll find the next guy to pay more if he thinks he's going to find someone that's going to pay more. You aren't investing when you do that, you're speculating."
Picture posted by Molly Jane Zuckerman on 22 April 2018
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https://images.cointelegraph.com/images/725_aHR0cHM6Ly9jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS9zdG9yYWdlL3VwbG9hZHMvdmlldy9hYjYxNjdjZGE4MGVhMjU2YjMyNGJjMjQzM2Q0MmQxNy5qcGc=.jpg
https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-brushes-9000-as-crypto-markets-continue-making-steady-gains


Famous for his "buy and hold" investment strategy, the Berkshire Hathaway CEO built his company - and his $82.8 billion net worth - backing companies that have substantive value.

"Put together a portfolio of companies whose aggregate earnings march upward over the years, and so also will the portfolio's market value," Buffett wrote in his 1996 letter to shareholders. "If you aren't willing to own a stock for ten years, don't even think about owning it for ten minutes."

To be an investment, what you're buying has to be worth something on its own, Buffett says.

For example, "If you buy something [like] a farm, an apartment house or an interest in a business and look to the asset itself to determine whether you've done something - what the farm produces, what the business earns ... it's a perfectly satisfactory investment," Buffett explains to Yahoo Finance. "You look at the investment itself to deliver the return to you.

"If you ban trading in farms, you could still buy farms, and have a perfectly decent investment," Buffett says.

Bitcoin, however, only increases in value by being bought and sold, he argues. Its value comes from what people are willing to pay.

"[I]f you ban trading in ... bitcoin, which nobody knows exactly what it is, people would say, 'Well why in the world would I buy it?'"

The Oracle of Omaha has held this opinion since at least 2014, when he told CNBC of cryptocurrencies,

"It's a mirage basically."

"The idea that it has some huge intrinsic value is just a joke in my view," Buffett said.

In 2017, bitcoin soared from below ＄1,000 at the start of the year to over ＄19,000 in December, catching the attention of everyone from J.P. Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to NFL players. Tuesday, bitcoin traded near $8,900 according to CoinDesk's price index.

Buffett sees a bleak future for the digital currency.


Buffett sees a bleak future for the digital currency.
PHOTO: Buffett sees a bleak future for the digital currency.
In 2017, bitcoin soared from below ＄1,000 at the start of the year to over ＄19,000 in December, catching the attention of everyone from J.P. Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to NFL players. Tuesday, bitcoin traded near ＄8,900 according to CoinDesk's price index.
Picture posted by Molly Jane Zuckerman on 22 April 2018
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https://cointelegraph.com/news/crypto-friendly-cheapair-asks-customers-for-feedback-on-switch-away-from-coinbase


"In terms of cryptocurrencies, generally, I can say with almost certainty that they will come to a bad ending," Buffett told CNBC in January. "When it happens or how or anything else, I don't know."


In terms of cryptocurrencies, generally, I can say with almost certainty that they will come to a bad ending,
PHOTO: "In terms of cryptocurrencies, generally, I can say with almost certainty that they will come to a bad ending," Buffett told CNBC in January. "When it happens or how or anything else, I don't know."
Picture posted by Molly Jane Zuckerman on 01 May 2018
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcdJZWpp6A3XX4tCWhiqBx8V_xLzM6azBLxl2eeRZ1_PuE8fOnzZszkLz_6l5Xsfd4VVGUeJrjtVhD35Por5w1EsO8jreXf9BRZ3kgGlKjdf5tPynFbohFZV2hIgjM0gR7nZBUQRN9NdM/s1600/725_Ly9jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS9zdG9yYWdlL3VwbG9hZHMvdmlldy9kNWQ1Yjc3ZjdiMjc3NjJkYmQzODVmZTZiN2IxYjA3Zi5qcGc%253D.jpg
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https://cointelegraph.com/news/crypto-markets-experience-slight-correction-but-btc-still-close-to-9000


Of course, Buffett has been wrong about backing new technologies before. He missed opportunities to invest in Google and Amazon, decisions he now calls mistakes.

"I did not think [founder Jeff Bezos] could succeed on the scale he has," Buffett said to shareholders in May 2017.

Crypto-enthusiasts argue that Buffet doesn't understand blockchain-based coins, and he has admitted as much.

Still, many other investing experts like CNBC's Jim Cramer, Kevin O'Leary and Tony Robbins, also call buying cryptocurrencies a gamble. They suggest thinking of it like rolling the dice in Las Vegas.

"As long as you can afford to lose everything you put into it, go with it," O'Leary told CNBC Make It in December 2017.

That mindset is alright with Buffett.

"There's nothing wrong with it if you want to gamble [that] somebody else will come along and pay you more money tomorrow," Buffett tells Yahoo Finance. "That's one kind of game. That is not investing."


The 'average Bitcoin user' is male (96%) as at 2013 according to a survey.
PHOTO: The 'average Bitcoin user' is male (96%) as at 2013 according to a survey.
"As long as you can afford to lose everything you put into it, go with it."
Picture posted by Olusegun Ogundeji on 06 July 2016
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijPuayizAJvfFUoZ-Ahk4FALum_Qrp6nFOlj7y63PlFv1AviMe1HlW5HlZ2jjO4DKngmUJ56tN3eqFipQa-gFQEmtCITiljmA9CKxLvrWjdxgQPWxugpWffqg1tKQlGRN8gg76R9zk8tI/s1600/725_Ly9jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS9zdG9yYWdlL3VwbG9hZHMvdmlldy8zOTJjZmNmYmMwNjUxMjgyM2M3Y2U5NzI0N2NmOWE5Yi5qcGc%253D.jpg
https://images.cointelegraph.com/images/725_Ly9jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS9zdG9yYWdlL3VwbG9hZHMvdmlldy8zOTJjZmNmYmMwNjUxMjgyM2M3Y2U5NzI0N2NmOWE5Yi5qcGc=.jpg
https://cointelegraph.com/news/its-a-mans-world-only-176-of-bitcoin-community-are-women

By Ali Montag, CNBC, Asiaone, 02 May 2018
This article was first published on CNBC



Reference
[1] Ali Montag, CNBC, Asiaone, Warren Buffett explains one thing people still don't understand about bitcoin, posted on 02 May 2018, http://www.asiaone.com/business/warren-buffett-explains-one-thing-people-still-dont-understand-about-bitcoin 
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Friday, January 26, 2018

'I know you cheated on your wife' blackmail scam demands payment in bitcoin

Source Website: http://www.asiaone.com/world/i-know-you-cheated-your-wife-growing-blackmail-scam-demands-payment-bitcoin
By Jennifer Schlesinger and Andrea Day, CNBC, 25 January 2018


Cryptocurrency BITCOIN used in blackmail scam
PHOTO: Cryptocurrency BITCOIN used in blackmail scam
Picture posted by independent on 22 January 2018 at 17:22
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https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2018/01/22/17/bitcoin.jpg
http://gnews.press/news/bitcoin-price-latest-updates-cryptocurrency-value-slips-again-after-partial-recovery


"I know you cheated on your wife."

Those chilling words were in a letter sent to Dave Eargle's home. The then-graduate student found the note in his mailbox and could not believe what he was reading.

"It is just your bad luck that I stumbled across your misadventures while working a job," the letter continued.

"Even if you decide to come clean with your wife about your cheating, doing so won't protect her from the humiliation she will feel when her friends and family find out the sordid details from me."

And then finally, a demand: "If you want me to destroy the evidence and leave you alone forever then send US$2,000 (S$2,613) in BITCOIN."

Eargle is happily (and faithfully) married, but said the blackmail letter had him on edge.

"And I had to think for a second because I was in a bit of a fluster, 'Am I actually keeping a secret from my wife?'" said Eargle, now an assistant professor at University of Colorado's Leeds School of Business. "It was scary because I felt like I was being targeted."


This is the envelope Dave Eargle received the letter in.

PHOTO: This is the envelope Dave Eargle received the letter in.
Photo: Dave Eargle
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https://fm.cnbc.com/applications/cnbc.com/resources/img/editorial/2018/01/19/104956035-envelope_rr.530x298.jpg?v=1516390974
http://www.asiaone.com/world/i-know-you-cheated-your-wife-growing-blackmail-scam-demands-payment-bitcoin


The blackmail letter

PHOTO: The blackmail letter
Photo: Dave Eargle
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsN1Nr2icG4RkFzxDFjoqogj-sD70JnFXW7hC8JscMkSCOQSv_hjYahR7mapkY5dqtRVAgp_Gzx4PPUwx5OuKhcD6FRgtvYywIOVkvyQh7FMO3cSgoRu3fxAU6XYsbR4-urUnnSVdSFHI/s1600/page-1.jpg
https://sc.cnbcfm.com/applications/cnbc.com/resources/files/2018/01/19/page-1.jpg
http://www.asiaone.com/world/i-know-you-cheated-your-wife-growing-blackmail-scam-demands-payment-bitcoin


He notified police and then decided to post the experience on his relatively unknown blog. He soon realised he was not alone.

"[My blog] had received maybe three, two hits a day," he said. "Suddenly, it jumped up to 200 a day during right after the waves [of letters], 200 a day, 300 a day.

"One of the waves, I got 500 visits. … I got a flood of new people saying, 'I got very similar letter. What do I do?'"

Eargle figured out that the letters were sent out in waves from different location across the country. The message was always the same - pay up or I will reveal your secret.

Married men from all over began reaching out to Eargle, some panicking about the letter.

"It was really comforting to find out that I wasn't probably being necessarily targeted, that this was just part of some more broad blackmailing scheme," he said.


[The attacker] is hoping that they might get lucky with someone who actually … [has] some infidelity there. And if they hit that target, that's a person who's probably willing to pay.
PHOTO: The blackmailing scheme
By Patrick Wyman, FBI
http://www.asiaone.com/world/i-know-you-cheated-your-wife-growing-blackmail-scam-demands-payment-bitcoin


According to Eargle, the scammer behind the letters is still at it. A bunch of letters went out across the country this month, with others going out in November and December.

"The cost of an incorrect guess about someone being unfaithful is … the cost of a stamp these days, 50 cents," Eargle said. "That's not bad odds for an attacker."

When Eargle received the letter, the ransom was US$2,000 in bitcoin, but he says more recent versions of the letter can ask for as much as US$8,000 in bitcoin.

"The amount of money is such that it's not so much that someone might be willing to just pay that to make it go away," said Patrick Wyman, a supervisory special agent with the FBI's money laundering unit. "They're hoping that they might get lucky with someone who actually … [has] some infidelity there. And if they hit that target, that's a person who's probably willing to pay."

The FBI and other authorities are working on bringing whomever is behind the scheme to justice.

No one is certain how the scammer picks the targets, but Eargle said would-be victims seem to live in affluent neighborhoods.

The men who received the letter may be "concerned about losing their social status if this attacker sends out information to their friends in their neighborhoods," Eargle said.

To make it easier to pay the ransom, the letter includes instructions on how to buy bitcoin. Eargle said each letter has a unique bitcoin wallet to send the money to, making it harder to trace.


Instructions on how to buy bitcoin

PHOTO: Instructions on how to buy bitcoin
Photo: Dave Eargle
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https://sc.cnbcfm.com/applications/cnbc.com/resources/files/2018/01/19/how-to-page-1.jpg
http://www.asiaone.com/world/i-know-you-cheated-your-wife-growing-blackmail-scam-demands-payment-bitcoin


"The idea behind virtual currency is that it hides behind this veil of secrecy that just because it's letters and numbers in terms of an account number, and there's no personal information associated with it, that law enforcement won't be able to track it," said Wyman at the FBI. "Virtual currencies do make it more difficult to track, but not impossible."

If you do receive the letter, the best advice is: Don't pay the ransom. (Eargle and others have not paid, and the scammer has not made good on those threats to alert letter recipients' wives or anyone in their social circles.)

But you should alert police and the FBI.

"That information is going to be very, very important for us to help connect the dots," Wyman said.

To avoid be targeting by the letter, Wyman suggests being careful whom you give your personal information to.

"If you're cautious about where you're sharing your personal information, … very specific details about yourself or your family, … that is going to help protect you from maybe this sort of a scam," he said.


If you do receive the letter, the best advice is: Don't pay the ransom.

PHOTO: If you do receive the letter, the best advice is: Don't pay the ransom. Alert police and the FBI.
"The idea behind virtual currency is that it hides behind this veil of secrecy that just because it's letters and numbers in terms of an account number, and there's no personal information associated with it, that law enforcement won't be able to track it," said Wyman at the FBI. "Virtual currencies do make it more difficult to track, but not impossible."
Picture saved by Yaara Willow to Yoga from The Journey Junkie I Yoga + Life Inspiration Tips
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https://www.pinterest.com/pin/349451252320850262/


PHOTO: The FBI and other authorities are working on bringing whomever is behind the scheme to justice. "Virtual currencies do make it more difficult to track, but not impossible."
Picture posted by hog fat on 24 April 2017
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By Jennifer Schlesinger and Andrea Day, CNBC, 25 January 2018



Reference
[1] Jennifer Schlesinger and Andrea Day, CNBC, 'I know you cheated on your wife': Growing blackmail scam demands payment in bitcoin, posted on 25 January 2018, http://www.asiaone.com/world/i-know-you-cheated-your-wife-growing-blackmail-scam-demands-payment-bitcoin
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