One of Latin America’s wealthiest individuals, Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego, has been a strong proponent of Bitcoin (BTC) for several years. Salinas has allocated an impressive 70% of his investment portfolio to the cryptocurrency, driven by his belief that fiat currencies will gradually lose purchasing power over time.
In a recent interview with CoinDesk, Salinas suggested that individuals should consider converting some of their home equity into Bitcoin. He emphasized that for many, their home represents the largest investment they possess. “Find a way to transform that into some kind of Bitcoin exposure to a larger or to a smaller degree,” he urged, highlighting the potential for both real estate and Bitcoin to appreciate in value.
Salinas’s confidence in Bitcoin stems from his view that it will outperform traditional assets, such as real estate, in terms of long-term appreciation. He describes Bitcoin as an “asymmetrical bet to the upside,” noting that as more people become aware of Bitcoin, demand is likely to increase. Drawing comparisons to gold and the U.S. dollar, he pointed out that while gold was priced at approximately $125 an ounce in July 1976 and now trades for over $4,500 an ounce, the U.S. dollar has lost about 85% of its purchasing power since that time.
Salinas also believes that scarce assets tend to maintain their value, which aligns with his investments in gold mining companies. He views Bitcoin as a modern incarnation of such assets. While he refrained from making any short-term price predictions, he confidently stated, “So it will be $1 million… I just don’t know when.”
As of now, Bitcoin is valued at $65,869, according to Decibel, indicating that the cryptocurrency market continues to be a focal point of interest among investors like Salinas.
