Warren Buffett Acquires $1B Stake In 'Rat Poison' Bitcoin Friendly Brazilian Bank While Cutting Stakes In Visa, Mastercard

Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) CEO Warren Buffett initiated a position in the Brazilian-Bitcoin BTC/USD friendly bank Nu Holdings Ltd NU while dumping shares of Visa Inc V and Mastercard Incorporated MA in the previous quarter.

What Happened: Berkshire said in a filing made with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Monday that it purchased $1 billion worth of Nubank shares in the fourth quarter of 2021. 

The company-led by the Oracle of Omaha sold $1.8 billion and $1.3 billion worth of Visa and Mastercard stock on the other hand.

On Tuesday, NU Holdings shares spiked 5.4% in the regular session to $9.15. The shares rose another 0.3% in the after-hours trading.

The move was first noted by Cointelegraph.

See Also: How To Buy Bitcoin (BTC)

Why It Matters: In June, Berkshire invested $750 million in the digital bank. Nubank offers investment in Bitcoin through the QR Bitcoin ETF, a product of Easynvest, a company acquired by NuBank in the same month.

Both Buffett and Berkshire Vice Chair Charlie Munger have taken a public stance against Bitcoin in the past. 

Buffett called the apex cryptocurrency “rat poison squared” in 2020. 

While Berkshire has not invested in cryptocurrencies directly, the companies that he did invest in have been gaining exposure to the world’s oldest cryptocurrency.

U.S. Bancorp, Bank of America and BNY Mellon all have exposure to cryptocurrencies in one form or the other.

Price Action:  On Tuesday, Berkshire Hathaway Class A shares closed 0.3% higher at $473,980. The company’s Class B shares ended Tuesday 0.6% higher at $316.20 and fell 0.3% in the after-hours session. At press time, BTC traded 3.95% higher at $44,229.98.

Read Next: Why Analyst Thinks Coinbase Is On Track To Become A 'Generational Company'

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