Bitcoin Skeptic Peter Schiff Acknowledges Blockchain Benefits for Gold

Peter Schiff, a well-known critic of cryptocurrencies, recently announced that he is introducing a tokenized gold product that utilizes blockchain technology—the same underlying system that supports Bitcoin. This revelation came during a debate with Binance founder CZ on December 4, where Schiff expressed his ongoing skepticism about Bitcoin.

Key Takeaways

Peter Schiff, a cryptocurrency critic, launched a blockchain-based gold token product while maintaining skepticism about Bitcoin.
His platform, T-Gold.com, allows users to buy physical gold and silver as blockchain tokens, enhancing gold’s transportability, divisibility, and fungibility.
Despite recognizing blockchain's advantages, Schiff argues that Bitcoin has no intrinsic value due to its inability to perform functions that gold can.
CZ presented the practical uses of cryptocurrencies, though Schiff argued these are ultimately just conversions to traditional currency.

In summary, the debate between Schiff and CZ highlights the contrasting views on the value and utility of cryptocurrency versus traditional assets like gold.

Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff admits blockchain superior to physical metal

Tokenized Gold: Schiff's New Venture

Schiff revealed T-Gold.com, a platform enabling users to purchase physical gold and silver that are stored in secure vaults. Customers can then withdraw their holdings in the form of blockchain tokens. He admitted that tokenization enhances gold’s attributes, making it “more transportable, more divisible, more fungible,” and improving “all of its monetary properties.”

“You’ve taken gold and you’ve now made it more transportable, more divisible, more fungible,” Schiff stated. “You’ve improved on all of its monetary properties, but you don’t lose the most important property, which is it’s a store of value because it’s value is the gold that the token represents.”

CZ quickly capitalized on Schiff's admission, pointing out, “What I’m hearing is that the tokenized gold is actually almost better than the gold itself in terms of being divisible, transferable, and transportable. It’s a medium of exchange.” Schiff agreed, saying, “As for money purposes, yes.”

Schiff's Continued Opposition to Bitcoin

While acknowledging the advantages of blockchain, Schiff maintained his belief that Bitcoin lacks intrinsic value. He pointed out that Bitcoin has dropped 40% compared to gold since its peak price in 2021. He explained that when Bitcoin reached its highest point of $69,000 four years ago, it could purchase 37.2 ounces of gold. Today, however, it only buys about 22.15 ounces.

“What makes Bitcoin worthless, as far as I’m concerned, is not the fact that I can’t touch it or taste it or smell it,” Schiff explained. “It’s that you can’t do anything with it.” He highlighted gold’s practical applications and its requirements by central banks, stating, “There are industries that need gold. They must buy gold. They can’t substitute copper or another metal. There are things that only gold can do.”

CZ's Argument: Practical Use Beyond Speculation

In response, CZ shared examples of how cryptocurrencies can be used in real-world scenarios. He mentioned a user from Africa who was able to reduce bill payment time from three days to three minutes by using crypto, which resulted in $1,000 in savings. He also highlighted the popularity of the Binance Visa card, which millions use for crypto transactions.

Schiff, however, dismissed these examples as mere conversions of Bitcoin to fiat currency rather than genuine Bitcoin transactions. He argued, “You’re selling Bitcoin to get money and then you’re using the money to buy goods and services, not the Bitcoin.”

The debate concluded with Schiff requesting that Binance list his tokenized gold token.