Warren Buffett says bitcoin 'definitely will come to a bad ending'

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January 10, 2018 2:06 PM

"We don't own any; we're not short any," Buffett said. "We'll never have a position in them."

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Buffett told CNBC the firm would never have a position in cryptocurrencies.

Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett said Wednesday that the firm had no interest in jumping on the cryptocurrency bandwagon.

"We don't own any; we're not short any," Buffett said in an interview on CNBC. "We'll never have a position in them."

Of options trades that would profit from price declines, he added: "If I could buy a five-year put on every one of the cryptocurrencies, I'd be glad to do it but I would never short a dime's worth."

"What's going on definitely will come to a bad ending," he said.

Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency that surged 1,327% in 2017 to become the largest, is off to a shaky start this year along with Ripple's XRP, while ether, the second-largest, has risen to all-time highs.

Buffett's comments came a day after JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said he regretted calling bitcoin a "fraud."

Buffett said Berkshire Hathaway remained focused on identifying good businesses and investing in them.

The conglomerate announced Wednesday that it would expand its board of directors to 14 members, adding Gregory Abel and Ajit Jain. Buffett and Charlie Munger, Berkshire Hathaway's vice chairman, will keep their positions on the board.

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