On May 4, in a recent Youtube video, Validus Power Corp.’s executive director, Greg Foss, discussed the potential for the banking industry’s failures to wipe out $10 trillion in equity. Foss expressed his support for “hard assets” such as real estate, gold, and bitcoin. He believes that bitcoin, the leading crypto asset, is one of the best hard assets available. According to Foss, bitcoin provides insurance against “the failure of a basket of fiat currencies.”
Foss Supports Holding Hard Assets Like Real Estate, Gold, and Bitcoin
In less than two months, chaos has erupted in the U.S. banking industry following the second, third, and fourth-largest bank failures in the country’s history. During a conversation with Kitco’s lead anchor and editor-in-chief, Michelle Makori, Greg Foss weighed in on Fed chairman Jerome Powell’s recent statement that the U.S. banking system is “sound and resilient.”
“I think Jerome Powell is a horrible poker player,” Foss opined to Makori. “There’s another shoe to fall [in the banking industry], or as Elon says, it could be an anvil,” Foss added. The Validus Power executive added that he thought Powell’s body language “reeked of desperation.” Foss insisted that the Fed tightened too much because they “waited too long to tighten at the outset.”
According to Foss, the possibility of more banks collapsing is high. While the largest banks are considered “too big to fail” and will likely receive bailouts, shareholders may not be so lucky. This is where significant financial losses can occur, the Validus Power executive emphasized to Makori. Foss estimates that there is “at least $10 trillion of bank equity globally that can literally be wiped out if the system fails.”
In his interview, Foss expressed his support for “hard assets” and specifically mentioned real estate, gold, and bitcoin. While Foss believes that bitcoin (BTC) is the best hard asset, he also recognizes the value of gold as an investment. However, Foss advises against selling gold to purchase bitcoin. Instead, he suggests selling a portion of one’s bond portfolio to invest in bitcoin. According to Foss, if a person doesn’t own bitcoin they are “actually taking on more risk.”
“You can look at bitcoin as being insurance on the failure of a basket of fiat currencies,” Foss told the Kitco anchor. “$200 trillion is the liability just of the United States. You take 160 [basis points] times $200 trillion and you get … $3.2 trillion would be the implied insurance value on the United States … What is bitcoin trading for? Well, about half a trillion dollars,” he added. Foss concluded his conversation with Makori by noting that “bitcoin is a free and open market,” while the “Fiat Ponzi is manipulated by guys like Jerome Powell.”
What are your thoughts on Greg Foss’ support for hard assets like real estate, gold, and bitcoin? Do you agree with his assessment of the banking industry’s potential failures and the need for alternative investments? Share your opinions in the comments section below.
