By Wayt
The current market is “even crazier than the dotcom era” and China made the right call when it banned cryptocurrencies, according to Warren Buffett’s right-hand man Charlie Munger.
“The dotcom boom was crazier on the valuations even than we have now but overall, I consider this era even crazier than the dotcom era,” the 97-year-old Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman said Friday, according to the Australian Financial Review.
The outspoken executive added that share prices for “good companies” are currently so high that investors who buy now are having a tough time ensuring high returns in the future.
Munger also praised China’s ban on cryptocurrencies as the “correct decision,” saying he wished the digital coins had never been invented and accusing people involved in the crypto industry of being greedy.
“Believe me, the people who are getting in cryptocurrencies are not thinking about the customer, they’re thinking about themselves,” said Munger, who has an estimated net worth of $2.2 billion, according to Forbes. “Just look at them. I wouldn’t want any one of them to marry into my family.”
Munger – who made headlines this fall for designing and funding a controversial and mostly windowless mega-dorm at the University of California, Santa Barbara – is known for his curmudgeonly attitude toward what he sees as excess and greed in the market.
In June, Munger slammed commission-free trading app Robinhood as a “gambling parlor” that’s “beneath contempt.”
“It’s a gambling parlor masquerading as a respectable business,” the 97-year-old said at the time. “And it’s telling people they aren’t paying commissions when the commissions are simply disguised in the trading.”
“It’s basically a sleazy, disreputable operation. And the interesting thing about it is that some good people you would be glad to have marry into your family have backed it,” he added.
In this Friday’s interview, Munger also praised Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos but said Amazon faces a threat from Costco, one of Munger’s favorite companies.
“Amazon may have more to fear from Costco in terms of retailing than the reverse,” said Munger. “Costco will eventually be a huge internet player. People trust it and they’ve enormous purchasing power.”
