For many institutions and high-end investors, bitcoin was not always an asset worth considering. However, with the price spiking to such an immeasurable degree, it looks like 2020 and 2021 have seen many of these individuals beginning to step into the crypto foray to take advantage of the space’s growing benefits. One of these individuals is Thomas Peterffy, the founder of online brokerage company Interactive Brokers.
Interactive Brokers’ Thomas Peterffy Now Owns Crypto
While Peterffy has never considered bitcoin in the past, he has recently admitted to investing in the currency. In addition, his company is now looking to launch new cryptocurrency trading services to its customers by the end of this summer. Peterffy has stated that while he does not think personally that the market will reach the level so many analysts seem to believe, he does not want to be completely out of the game should he be proven wrong at any point.
In an interview, he said:
Even I, myself, have put a little bit of money into crypto, because even though chances are, I think, that this is not going to be a viable market, I think that there’s a small chance that this will be a dominant currency, so you have to play the odds.
Peterffy is not the only man to change his tune on bitcoin in recent years. Billionaire investor Ray Dalio, for example, was recently quoted as calling bitcoin “one hell of an invention.” Just six months ago, Dalio was quick to address the benefits associated with bitcoin and explained:
To have invented a new type of money via a system that is programmed into a computer and that has worked for around ten years and is rapidly gaining popularity as both a type of money and a store of wealth is an amazing accomplishment. There aren’t many alternative gold-like assets at this time of rising need for them.
These comments came only a few months after Dalio initially expressed criticism of bitcoin, stating:
I cannot imagine central banks, big institutional investors, businesses, or multinational companies using it. If I’m wrong about these things, I would love to be corrected.
In the past, Peterffy has expressed skepticism towards bitcoin, claiming in 2017 that while he did not have a problem with people who wanted to trade these assets, he hoped governments and individuals alike would not be foolish enough to try and link bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies “by federal regulations to the real economy.”
Clients Were Just Too Interested
While he still does not hold much personal interest in the digital currency space, Peterffy has acknowledged that his clients’ curiosity towards these assets is continuing to grow at a rapid rate. Thus, his company’s end-of-summer offerings are primarily designed to keep traders happy. He said:
Several of our clients expressed an interest, and I completely understand it.
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