“That sort of relegates bitcoin to the class of what I’d name a collectible. It’s finite and so has worth derived by the relative forces of provide and demand the way in which artwork, or commodities, or different collectibles derive worth. For me, that’s a really key distinction.” 

Whereas Burkett says he isn’t “anti-bitcoin” and sees an excessive amount of curiosity within the know-how, he thinks the truth that bitcoin has been marketed as an funding has created an excessive amount of confusion amongst buyers. Accessing bitcoin via funding autos like ETFs, too, has popularize the view of bitcoin as an funding. Whereas it might seem like a semantic distinction, Burkett believes that as a result of bitcoin doesn’t meet his definition of an funding it’s not one thing he would elect to place in his shoppers’ accounts.

Francis Sabourin could not share Burkett’s hardline delineation between what’s and isn’t an funding, nonetheless he treats bitcoin and different cryptocurrencies as a purely speculative play. The director of wealth administration and portfolio supervisor at Francis Sabourin Wealth Administration of Richardson Wealth sees the approval of ETFs as a victory for bitcoin and cryptocurrency advocates, nonetheless he ensures his shoppers are conscious of the speculative nature of that market.

“I inform my shoppers it’s not a confirmed funding. It’s very speculative. It’s attractive, it’s attention-grabbing to know, but it surely’s not but mature when it comes to funding,” Sabourin says. “That’s as a result of there’s no intrinsic worth by itself. Gold has intrinsic worth, {dollars} have intrinsic worth. You are able to do one thing together with your gold bar, you’ll be able to soften it down and make jewelry, however with bitcoin what else are you going to do with it? Is it Monopoly cash or what?”

Sabourin says that when shoppers come to him asking about bitcoin or different cryptocurrencies, he expresses these issues, says they’re free to check out an funding however emphasizes the speculative nature of bitcoin.