Berkshire Hathaway’s stock, BRK.A, encountered a sudden and brief decline on June 3 due to a technical malfunction on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). This glitch caused Berkshire shares to appear as if they had dropped by nearly 100%, leading the NYSE to temporarily halt trading in several prominent stocks in order to rectify the issue.
At the close of trading, the NYSE announced its intention to promptly cancel the erroneous trades resulting from the earlier technical malfunction. Nevertheless, this incident has drawn attention to the significant underperformance of Berkshire Hathaway’s stock compared to Bitcoin over the past ten years, without any technical glitches involved.
Since 2015, Berkshire Hathaway’s stock has decreased in value by almost 100% when compared to Bitcoin, falling from approximately 1,000 BTC to 9.15 BTC.
Curiously, the performance of Bitcoin against BRK.A and its top stock holdings stands in stark contrast to Berkshire Hathaway owner Warren Buffett’s harsh opinion of Bitcoin, famously describing it as “rat poison squared.”
According to the Nakamoto Portfolio simulator’s findings, even a mere 1% allocation of Bitcoin into Berkshire Hathaway’s existing portfolio, which includes top stock holdings like Apple, Bank of America, and American Express, could have increased returns from 214% to 240% over a five-year adjusted period.
Furthermore, allocating 5% to 10% of the portfolio to Bitcoin could have yielded impressive returns of 328% to 410% for Buffett during the same timeframe.
Notwithstanding Buffett’s reluctance towards Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency has become one of the most valuable assets globally. As of June 4, Bitcoin’s net market capitalization stood at approximately $1.36 trillion, making it the ninth-largest asset in terms of valuation. Interestingly, Bitcoin surpasses Meta Platforms and Berkshire Hathaway, with market caps of $1.20 billion and $899.36 million, respectively.
Bitcoin’s valuation is likely to increase in the months and years ahead as it gains recognition as an alternative safe haven asset to gold, which currently holds a market cap of $15.8 trillion.
For instance, the price of gold, similar to Berkshire Hathaway stock, has plummeted by over 99% compared to Bitcoin since 2015.
According to experienced trader Peter Brandt, Bitcoin is projected to grow by 230% and reach a new record high of 100 ounces of gold per BTC. This would potentially push the cryptocurrency above silver’s market cap of $1.68 trillion.
It is important to note that this article does not offer investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading decision carries risks, and readers should conduct their own research before making any decisions.