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Saudi Prince Al-Waleed: Bitcoin Is 'Going to Implode'
A senior member of the Saudi royal family struck a critical tone about bitcoin during a media appearance today.
By Stan Higgins
Updated Sep 13, 2021, 7:04 a.m. Published Oct 23, 2017, 8:35 p.m.
Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal sharply criticized bitcoin during an appearance on CNBC today, saying that he agrees with JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon's assessment that the cryptocurrency is a "fraud."
"I just don't believe in this bitcoin thing," Al-Waleed said, according to a transcript published by CNBC. "I think it's just going to implode one day. It's Enron in the making."
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When asked about the specific comparison between bitcoin and the infamous American energy company that fell apart in the early 2000s amid revelations of massive accounting fraud, Al-Waleed reiterated his position that he "just [doesn't] believe in bitcoin completely."
Al-Waleed went on to say:
"It doesn't make sense. This thing is not regulated. It's not under control. It's not under the supervision [of] any federal – elect – United States Federal Reserve or any other central bank. I don't believe in this whole thing at all. I think it's going to implode."
It was then that Al-Waleed – a Saudi royal family member who, as head of the Kingdom Holding Company, has an estimated net worth of more than $17 billion – said he agreed with Dimon, who issued the now-infamous remark last month that he believes that bitcoin "is a fraud."
Dimon – whose bank is a backer of blockchain-related initiatives like the Enterprise Ethereum Foundation – has since doubled down on those remarks, predicting that governments would begin targeting the cryptocurrency.
Image via CBS/YouTube
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