Credit Suisse CEO says Bitcoin is the real Bubble

Credit Suisse Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam on Thursday expressed caution about Bitcoin, saying the current interest in the crypto-currency could eventually subside.

”Bitcoin presents a number of challenges. The first of them is really the anonymity,“ Thiam told a results news conference. ”I think most banks in the current state of regulation have little or no appetite to get involved in a currency which has such anti-money laundering challenges.

“From what we can identify, the only reason today to buy or sell Bitcoin is to make money, which is the very definition of speculation and the very definition of a bubble.”

Bitcoin rocketed above $7,000 for the first time on Thursday, after a more than sevenfold increase in its value since the start of the year. 

Bankers also are steering clear of bitcoin for fear that criminals could use its anonymity to hide their activities, Thiam said.

“Most banks in the current state of regulation have little or no appetite to get involved in a currency which has such anti-money laundering challenges,” he said.

Thiam joins a growing list of financial industry names who have come out against the digital currency. Last week, billionaire investor Warren Buffett was the most recent to say bitcoin was in a bubble. He echoed Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio, who expressed the same sentiment to CNBC in September.

At the time, Dalio noted that the speculation and volatility around bitcoin prevented it, in his eyes, from being an effective store of wealth.While all over the news currently with its meteoric price gains, Thiam added that he expects interest in bitcoin to subside.