Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, has investments in FTX. Following the collapse of the crypto exchange, he said it’s a turning point for the industry, emphasizing that the “crypto bottom is in.” He is now pushing for crypto regulation. “What I’m going to be doing is I’m going to fly to Washington and I want regulation. I want it now,” O’Leary stressed.
Kevin O’Leary on Crypto’s Bottom, Relationship With FTX
Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary has spoken up about his investments in FTX after the firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. O’Leary has an equity stake in the cryptocurrency exchange and has signed a multiyear deal to become its ambassador and spokesperson. He also asked for his compensation to be paid in crypto and managed on the FTX platform.
When asked about his reaction to the implosion of FTX, he told CNBC: “Obviously, one of frustration, there’s no question about it … I’m disappointed like many shareholders.” However, he stressed that he is still “a huge advocate for the potential of blockchains and cryptocurrencies.” O’Leary continued:
It’s not the first time I’ve made a bad investment, probably not the last time, but luckily I make more good ones than bad ones and I learn from my mistakes.
Mr. Wonderful also tweeted about FTX Saturday: “As an investor, you will never get it right every time. You will make some mistakes. Sometimes big ones like FTX. The key is to learn from them so you don’t repeat. Over time, experience will get you to a place where you make more good investments than bad.”
He ended his tweet with:
Crypto bottom is in!
The Shark Tank star previously explained how bottoms are made in any market, including equities, debt, real estate, and crypto.
“You always need a big player to go to zero … It always gives you a good bottom when you get a large player over-leveraged that goes to zero, and that always tends to be the beginning of the rebuilding process,” he detailed in July. “Someone is out there on the brink of zero. That’s ok. In fact, I would argue that’s a good thing.” He emphasized at the time:
Someone’s going to zero. I don’t know who but it will be great for everyone else that survives because everybody will learn from that.
He warned in July that a major crypto panic event was coming. At the time, he said: “I don’t believe we’ve seen the bottom yet.”
O’Leary Wants Crypto Regulation ‘Now’
“What’s going to happen now is there won’t be another situation like this for institutional investors ever again,” O’Leary exclaimed, adding that institutions will not invest until the industry gets regulated, whether it’s by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or other regulators. He revealed:
What I’m going to be doing is I’m going to fly to Washington and I want regulation. I want it now. No more delaying. I think this puts tremendous pressure on the SEC.
Mr. Wonderful shared that one thing he wants to see most in the crypto industry is for the Stablecoin Transparency Act to pass. However, he said it has been “floating around forever” in Congress. “We’ve got to stop doing this to ourselves … It’s time to move forward with regulation.”
He explained that this Act allows people “to use the U.S. dollar as a payment system,” noting that he would stablecoins in all of his businesses every day if the bill becomes law. “It’s far superior to ACH, far superior to SWIFT, far faster, more transparent, and 100% auditable,” he outlined. Earlier this month, he predicted that bitcoin will go up when the Stablecoin Transparency Act passes.
Despite making losses investing in FTX, O’Leary is not deterred from buying more cryptocurrencies, stating: “I’m still going to invest in crypto. I lost money … doesn’t stop me from buying more. I’m going to do just that.” The Shark Tank star concluded:
This is actually a turning point for this industry, a maturation for this industry.
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