Why 'The Big Short' Investor Michael Burry Is Not Short Bitcoin

Hedge fund manager Michael Burry confirmed that he isn’t short Bitcoin BTC/USD despite his belief that cryptocurrencies are in a bubble.

What Happened: According to a report from CNBC on Friday, Burry said he has not been shorting Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrencies.

Yet the investor stood firm in his conviction that the digital assets are in a bubble.

“I’ve not been shorting cryptocurrencies at all. And I’m not now … I believe that cryptocurrencies are in a bubble and that most in it do not understand it well,” he said.

Why It Matters: Burry is famed for his role in predicting the 2008 financial crisis, and his massive bet against the housing market, which served as the inspiration for the book “The Big Short” by Michael Lewis.

Last week, market participants speculated that Burry was short Bitcoin after he asked his Twitter followers “how to short a cryptocurrency” in a tweet that has since been deleted.

“Ok, I haven’t done this before, how do you short a cryptocurrency? Do you have to secure a borrow? Is there a short rebate? Can the position be squeezed and called in? In such volatile situations, I tend to think it’s best not to short, but I’m thinking out loud here,” he said at the time.

At the time of Burry’s tweet, Bitcoin was trading at around $58,000. The digital asset has gained 7% in value since, hitting a six-month high of $62,600 earlier Monday. Burry had also deactivated his Twitter account on Friday, prompting some to suggest that he “rage quit” in response to jibes from Crypto Twitter.

Let me get this right.

Michael Burry of “Big Short” fame asked how to short #Bitcoin, was destroyed by crypto Twitter and then rage quit Twitter entirely because he couldn’t deal with the responses?

— The Wolf Of All Streets (@scottmelker) October 15, 2021

Image by Maxim Hopman on Unsplash.