Billionaire Kevin O'Leary has expressed skepticism about the newly approved spot Bitcoin ETFs in the US, stating that in his opinion they “add no value”.
O'Leary's negative stance stems from the fees charged by ETF issuers, although some have offered temporary waivers. “If you're a purist and like me and hold Bitcoin as digital gold for the long term, I would never buy an ETF,” he told Fox Business. “Why would I pay these fees? They're completely unnecessary and they don't add any value to me.”
Although the SEC approved 11 Bitcoin ETFs on Wednesday, O'Leary predicts only two or three will survive, echoing a prediction made by Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz. “I would bet giants like Fidelity and BlackRock will come out on top because they have huge sales forces,” O’Leary said.
Despite his personal skepticism about investing in new ETFs, O'Leary sees regulatory approvals as a meaningful step in advancing the cryptocurrency industry. He hopes ETFs could encourage lawmakers to examine digital payment systems such as the dollar-pegged stablecoin USDC.
The billionaire name said, “Now, we are experiencing this important event, which is great. But it is too early, we are only in the first round.”
O'Leary predicted that BTC has the potential to triple its price to $150,000-250,000 by 2030. However, he disagreed with Cathie Wood's bullish scenario of BTC reaching $1.5 million by 2030, stating that such a scenario could only happen if there was an economic disaster:
“The fact that Bitcoin reached this price so quickly means, in my view, that the US economy is floundering in some way. So no, I don't agree with that price point.”
*This is not investment advice.