I ‘Don’t Give a Sh*t’ about Bitcoin

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Much like an old house that comes to be inhabited by the spirit, who, though no longer living, nevertheless has unfinished business on earth, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is haunted. However, unlike the protagonists in the films that will inevitably trend on Netflix this evening, Dimon’s spectre is primarily technological, not paranormal, for the investment banking titan is haunted by bitcoin.

Despite his frequent, often loud protestations that he does not care about bitcoin and does not indent to discuss the matter further, he was fated to become the archetype of the bitcoin bear, ensuring that, as long as there’s a reporter nearby, the subject of cryptocurrency will never be too far away.

And so it is fitting that today, on Halloween — bitcoin’s birthday — a video has emerged that shows Dimon once more receiving an unwelcome visitation from the cryptocurrency, now a decade old.

Speaking on Tuesday at an Axios conference in Los Angeles, Dimon was asked about why he changed his mind on bitcoin. True to form, he doubled down on his previous statements, saying that he hadn’t changed his mind and just doesn’t “give a sh*t” about the subject.

He said:

“I never changed what I said, I just regret having said it. I didn’t want to be the spokesman against bitcoin. I don’t really give a sh*t, that’s the point, okay? Blockchain is real, it’s technology, but bitcoin is not the same as a fiat currency.”

Ever the crypto critic, Dimon has over the years used a myriad of epithets to convey his distaste for the subject, variously referring to it as a “fraud,” a “waste of time,” an asset that is “worth nothing,” and a “stupid” investment with “no actual value.” Unsurprisingly, he’s also a card-carrying member of the “blockchain not bitcoin” brigade.

However, as CCN has reported, JPMorgan has, despite Dimon’s hostile public stance, quietly begun “looking into” cryptocurrency, going so far as to acknowledge in published reports that the asset class is unlikely to disappear and could disrupt the banking industry.

Featured image from Flickr/Fortune Global Forum

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