In the fourth quarter of 2018, he made many portfolio adjustments, including the acquisition of a crypto-friendly bank.
According to recent SEC filings, Warren Buffett‘s investment business sold shares of Visa and Mastercard, while also buying Nubank, a crypto-friendly Brazilian bank, according to the Financial Times.
- Buffett, a well-known traditional investor, has been an outspoken opponent of the cryptocurrency industry.
- In 2018, he referred to bitcoin as “rat poison squared,” and remains one of the few bitcoin naysayers who hasn’t changed his position since then.
- However, according to the most recent statements that its investment company filed with the SEC, Berkshire Hathaway made a number of changes to its portfolio that can be read as pro-crypto in nature.
- The firm has maintained its strong banking position while acquiring a neobank in the form of Brazil’s Nubank. Berkshire bought $500 million worth of Nubank in June 2021, and then bought $1 billion worth of Nubank stock in the fourth quarter of that year.
- Nubank’s investment unit, Nulvest, allows clients to invest in digital asset traded funds (ETFs).
In addition, Berkshire has sold Visa and Mastercard shares for a total of $1.8 billion and $1.3 billion, respectively. - Buffett’s partner at Berkshire, Charlie Munger, is also a skeptic who, in recent years, has lamented the creation of digital assets.
