1/5/2021 Mercury Reader

bloomberg.com

Winklevoss Twins Ride Bitcoin

Surge to Become Billionaires
Again
Nov. 7th, 2020 Send to Kindle

Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, whose fortunes have been on a

roller coaster since they jostled with fellow student Mark

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Zuckerberg at Harvard University more than a decade ago, are

once again billionaires thanks to a surge in the price of Bitcoin.

The twins bought $11 million worth of Bitcoins in 2013, according

to the New York Times, and soon became evangelists, creating
crypto exchange Gemini Trust Co. The 39-year-old brothers, who
gained widespread fame following the release of the 2010 movie
“The Social Network,” briefly became billionaires in 2017 when
Bitcoin soared to a record before the volatile currency
plummeted.

Bitcoin has more than doubled this year to $15,433, partly driven
by fears that massive central bank easing and fiscal stimulus will
debase currencies. Each of the twins is worth about $1 billion,
according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. They also own
other cryptocurrencies including Ether.

The Winklevoss brothers declined to comment on their wealth

through a spokeswoman.

Niche, Volatile

Cryptocurrencies have increasingly gained the backing of

established firms. Square Inc. last month said it invested about
$50 million in Bitcoin, while MicroStrategy Inc.’s Michael Saylor
cited the Federal Reserve’s recent actions as helping convince him
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to put the lion’s share of the software firm’s cash into the
cryptocurrency. Fidelity Investments in August disclosed it was
starting a passively managed fund for wealthy investors, and
hedge fund manager Paul Tudor Jones has said it’s useful as an
inflationary hedge.

“The price of Bitcoin is being driven by all of the money printing

and uncertainty in the world right now,” Tyler Winklevoss, who is
Gemini’s chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Still, cryptocurrencies remain niche, risky and highly volatile.

Warren Buffett famously referred to Bitcoin as “rat poison
squared” several years ago, and hasn’t changed that view, arguing
that cryptocurrencies have no value. Their ownership tends to be
highly concentrated, and so-called whales have sway over prices.

“I’m not a huge fan of cryptocurrencies,” Ken Griffin said during an

event last month for the Robin Hood Foundation. The Citadel
founder expressed concern about some of its “nefarious uses,”
the lack of demand for such currencies from sovereigns, and the
importance of the U.S. dollar and its simplicity.

‘Overtaking Gold’
The Winklevoss brothers continue to deepen their involvement in
crypto. The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority recently approved
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their application for an electronic-money license, paving the way

for the expansion of Gemini into the U.K. market.

Read more: Winklevoss Twins’ crypto exchange is expanding into

the U.K.

In an August essay, the twins said they expect Bitcoin’s price to

reach $500,000.

“Inflation is coming,” they wrote. “Money stored in a bank will get

run over. Money invested in assets like real estate or the stock
market will keep pace. Money stored in gold or Bitcoin will outrun
the scourge. And money stored in Bitcoin will run the fastest,
overtaking gold.”

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