Kenneth Rogoff, former Chief Economist at the International Monetary Fund, on Tuesday evaluated his failed 2018 projection that Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) would be worth $100 rather than $100,000 within a decade.
Rogoff Explains Why He Got BTC’s Prediction Wrong
In an X post, Rogoff said he was "far too optimistic" about the U.S.'s willingness to implement "sensible" cryptocurrency regulation, in an apparent dig at the recent passage of the GENIUS Act and CLARITY Act.
"Why would policymakers want to facilitate tax evasion and illegal activities?," the Harvard University Professor stated.
He then said he underestimated Bitcoin's demand as a preferred "transaction medium" in the "global underground economy," amplifying the long-held narrative that the apex cryptocurrency is primarily used for illicit purposes.
Rogoff then trained his guns on the federal government, specifically President Donald Trump.
"I did not anticipate a situation where regulators, and especially the regulator in chief, would be able to brazenly hold hundreds of millions (if not billions) of dollars in cryptocurrencies," he said.
The remark was in reference to the Trump-backed products like the Official Trump (CRYPTO: TRUMP) meme coin and decentralized finance platform World Liberty Financial. In the latest financial disclosure, Trump revealed earning more than $57 million from cryptocurrency ventures.
See Also: Trump Family Crypto Fortune Tied To Binance-Linked PancakeSwap: Report
Crypto Advocates Gang Up Against Rogoff
Rogoff’s post sparked a flurry of reactions from cryptocurrency advocates.
Entrepreneur and investor Anthony Pompliano ridiculed him, saying, “Fiat economist still doesn't understand bitcoin. Blames everyone but himself for missing it.”
Saifedean Ammous, the author of “The Bitcoin Standard,” also scoffed at Rogoff, saying he writes “walls of text” blaming the entire planet for not living up to his misunderstandings.
Price Action: At the time of writing, BTC was exchanging hands at $113,706, down 1.17% over the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro. The apex cryptocurrency has surged a whopping 882.5% since Rogoff’s 2018 doom prediction.
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