The Bitcoin price (BTC) began to rise from the $27,900 handle on Sunday, Apr 9. By Tuesday, it had reached $30,450, entering into full rally territory.
Unfortunately, most of Jim Cramer’s audience missed out on the opportunity to gain 23% as the CNBC “Mad Money” host advised viewers to avoid Bitcoin on Mar 14.
Cramer’s Opinion on Bitcoin
Cramer told CNBC watchers to sell any BTC they had:
“Bitcoin went up today. And I would argue now it can’t even be held in banks. Bitcoin is a strange animal. I will say point blank: I think it’s being manipulated up. It was being manipulated the whole time by Sam Bankman-Fried. Please don’t assume therefore, that it’s not still being manipulated. And I would sell my Bitcoin right into this rally. I mean I had been a believer at one time in Bitcoin. Not here, not now.”
However, the bitcoin price surged since then. When Cramer offered his opinion, BTC closed at $24,746, and it had just gained 22.58% in a four-day run up from $20,187 on Mar 10. That’s why Cramer suggested selling right into the rally.
Any CNBC watchers who sold their BTC missed out on another 23% leg up from the Mar 14 price. All because Jim Cramer said he thinks it’s being manipulated. However, he didn’t have any substantial reason to think so.
Why Cramer’s Advice About BTC Should Be Taken with A Grain of Salt
All Jim had to offer by way of argument was, “It was being manipulated the whole time by Sam Bankman-Fried.” Therefore, Cramer argued, it’s possible that someone could still be manipulating it. That’s not a strong enough reason.
Moreover, in the first place, it would be more accurate to say Bitcoin manipulated FTX up, not the other way around. Even as big as FTX got, it was never the deciding factor in the bitcoin price.
Furthermore, Jim Cramer’s own stock-picking record leaves much to be desired. An in-depth study of Cramer’s stock picks by researchers at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania found that over 17 years, Cramer’s picks produced an annualized 4.08% return over a period that the S&P 500 Index gained 7.07%.
Those who followed Cramer’s advice about Bitcoin in January, when he called crypto a “sham” while BTC traded at $20,688, missed out on a 46.8% gain.
