Apple’s co-founder, Steve Wozniak, has once again come out to endorse Bitcoin. According to Wozniak, Bitcoin is a ‘miracle of technology.’ Despite being a proponent for Bitcoin, Wozniak does not hold any investments in the digital asset.
Besides his recent sentiments, Wozniak had earlier stated that Bitcoin is the ‘only digital gold’, a sentiment that has echoed in the crypto sector over the years. Market analysts have often compiled case studies on how Bitcoin makes for better investment and store of value compared to gold.
Bitcoin is Better than Gold
Wozniak spoke on Bitcoin during the Talent Land Digital 2021, a virtual event in Latin America focused on technology and innovation. In his speech, Wozniak stated that Bitcoin was a ‘unique mathematical formula’.
The Apple co-founder also gave reasons as to why Bitcoin stands superior to gold. According to him, Bitcoin mining was an easier and more efficient process compared to gold mining. Hence, it was much easier to mine Bitcoin blocks compared to extracting gold from mineral sites.
“Gold is limited, and you have to look for it. Bitcoin is the most amazing mathematical miracle. I do not invest in Bitcoin, but I believe it’s here to stay,” he said.
Bitcoin vs Gold
Many players in the crypto market have supported the argument of Bitcoin vs gold. What makes the two similar is that they both have a limited supply, hence stabilising their market prices. The supply of gold is limited because once mined; it cannot regenerate. Moreover, the difficulty of extraction boosts its value.
On the other hand, the supply of Bitcoin is also limited, given that there can only be 21 million coins. The last Bitcoin will be mined in 2140, and by this time, there will be no new Bitcoin being released into circulation, hence stabilizing value.
Wozniak had initially made similar comments about Bitcoin in June 2018. At the time, he stated that ‘only Bitcoin is pure digital gold.’ Wozniak also noted that his sentiments regarding Bitcoin supported Jack Dorsey, Twitter CEO, who has previously argued that Bitcoin will be the ‘single currency of the internet.’
Other Experts Support Argument
Wozniak’s comments about gold come a few weeks after Ricardo Salinas Pliego, the third-richest man in Mexico, supported sentiments that Bitcoin is the new gold. “That’s totally right, Bitcoin is the new gold, but much more portable, transporting Bitcoin is so much easier than having gold bars in your pockets,” he said.
The other market enthusiast who has also supported sentiments that Bitcoin is the digital gold is Mike Novogratz. Novogratz is the founder and CEO of Galaxy Digital, a firm that has heavily invested in cryptocurrencies.
According to Novogratz, Bitcoin is also edging closer towards exceeding gold’s market cap because of rising retail and institutional adoption of the digital asset. In an interview he held with CNBC in March, Novogratz noted that the adoption of Bitcoin was faster than he had anticipated, and the rising adoption of the system was a shock.
Novogratz started exploring Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in 2013 when one Bitcoin was valued at around $100. At the time, Novogratz had predicted that the price of one Bitcoin would eventually reach $60,000, and with the gains the coin has made this year, Novogratz believes that the sentiments he made then were conservative.
“At the beginning of the year, I thought $60,000 was my target because that would have been 10% of gold,” Novogratz said. “But I told myself and our investors that once it gets to 10%, we’re all going to say it’s going to 20%, and then when it gets to 20%, it’s going to go to 50% and then 100%.”
Market Caps
Gold’s market capitalisation currently stands at around $10.7 trillion, while Bitcoin’s market cap stands at around $1.1 trillion. However, Bitcoin has been making massive gains this year in both the retail market and the institutional market; hence it has the potential of outshining gold in the long run.
If Bitcoin bulls resume, the market cap will grow and inch Bitcoin closer towards achieving gold’s market cap. Novogratz had earlier predicted that by the end of this year, Bitcoin would reach $100K.
Currently, the price of one Bitcoin is equivalent to 34.49 ounces of gold. This is quite the growth given that a year back, one Bitcoin was equivalent to 4.19 ounces of gold.
