‘Bitcoin Bernie’: Mike Novogratz Calls for Radical Weath Redistribution

‘Bitcoin Bernie’: Mike Novogratz Calls for Radical Weath Redistribution

By CCN: These days, billionaire hedge fund titan Mike Novogratz is known more for his rabid Bitcoin pumping than his Wall Street wizardry. However, in a new CNBC interview, he channeled his inner Bernie Sanders to champion another of his passions: wealth redistribution.

Novogratz, Bernie, & AOC Find Surprising Common Ground

During an appearance on Squawk Box today, Novogratz commented on America’s income equality gap and declared that we need a “redistribution of wealth.”

The Galaxy Digital chief believes that one way to do that is to levy taxes on Wall Street. He echoes sentiments not commonly heard these days among the money-centric investment culture, but rather from leftists like Alexandria Occasio-Cortez, Andrew Yang, and yes, Bernie Sanders.

“I think you need redistribution of wealth, there are a lot of different ways you can do that. I think a Wall Street tax is an interesting one.”

Bernie Sanders, for his part, introduced a bill that would tax stock, bond, and derivatives trades at 0.005% to 0.5%.

Wealthy people are increasingly concerned about the potential powder keg posed by the colossal divide between the rich and the poor. The situation has regressed from a perceived “golden age” in the 1950s and 60s, when upward mobility and middle-class wages were abundant, to an absurd reality where many CEOs earn in a day what their janitors will make in several months.

According to Novogratz, many people who cite conservative economist Milton Friedman forget that he wrote at a time when the wealthy paid far more taxes than they do today.

Ray is right. Milton Friedman and shareholder value has been way overdone. We need a moral revolution to get businesses to think of the other constituents – labor, customers, the planet, and the communities they operate in. @justcapital_ https://t.co/VX0B6RaCbX

— Michael Novogratz (@novogratz) February 7, 2019

Under Frank Delano Roosevelt, for example, the top tax bracket was as high as 95%. Until the 1970s, absurdly high taxes were the norm. The Reagan era brought about a reduction in top-tier taxes that has continued through today. It’s no secret that most of our systems are broken, but is “wealth redistribution” an ideal solution?

According to Mike Novogratz, the answer is yes. Just call him the “bitcoin Bernie.”

Novogratz: Don’t Bet Against Uber or Tesla

Novogratz typically gives his views on a wide range of topics.

In the same appearance, Novogratz said “I wouldn’t short Uber,” and went on to explain that while he’s not currently “excited” by the company, he feels that it has staying power. Like Tesla.

Speaking of Tesla, he discouraged people from betting against the company and its embattled CEO.

“It’s hard to short Elon Musk. Look what he did just last night with SpaceX. […] Tesla, the hard thing is on the financing side, they’re running on that negative. It’s hard to short Elon Musk.”

Tesla has been leading the market in shedding value as investors have shied away from the antics of the wunderkind Musk. Novogratz feels that ultimately, the innovation of projects like SpaceX and Tesla will outweigh the negatives associated with Musk as an individual. Other companies have done well despite the antics of their executives, such as Uber.

He also once again reiterated the “store of value” proposition for bitcoin, saying that it’s “not going to be a payment currency.”

“bitcoin is not going to be a payment currency — it’s going to be just like gold. It won that lane.”

Novogratz founded Galaxy Digital, a crypto bank, shortly before the last major bubble burst in bitcoin.

Published at Fri, 24 May 2019 20:07:14 +0000