Apple Inc. CEO, Tim Cook revealed during the NYT’s DealBook conference on Tuesday that he has personally invested in cryptocurrency and has been interested in it “for some time.”
“I think it’s reasonable to own it as part of a diversified portfolio,” Cook mentioned in conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin. “I’m not giving anyone investment advice, by the way,” he cautioned and instantly followed up, without giving a clear about the cryptocurrencies he has invested in.
Tim Cook clarifies, Apple has no “immediate” plans to launch crypto offerings
While Apple CEO confirmed his own investment in cryptocurrency, he seemed a lot more guarded about Apple’s crypto-investment plans as a company. Cook declined to invest the company’s cash balance in cryptocurrency and clarified that there are no “immediate” plans to launch any crypto-related offerings. However, the CEO has created hype after revealing that “there may be different things that Apple is looking at” when it comes to cryptocurrency, without disclosing any particular plans.
It is worth noting that Apple doesn’t have any crypto products or services at present. However, during the early days of 2021, an Apple job posting indicated that Apple’s payment unit was scouring for a crypto-savvy person to oversee coalition efforts.
Apple CEO Tim Cook’s comments on crypto have fired up discussions on Twitter
Cook’s crypto comments at Dealbook have fired up Twitter discussions. The eternal bitcoin believer Michael Saylor (MicroStrategy CEO) also tweeted, “If Apple added support for Bitcoin to the iPhone and converted the treasury to a Bitcoin Standard, it would be worth at least $1 trillion to their shareholders.”
Cook was also questioned about NFTs during the conference. To which he stated that NFTs are interesting but “it will take a while to play out in a way that is for the mainstream person.”
The increasing popularity and use of virtual currencies indicate Apple may adopt crypto
Cryptocurrencies are seeing a massive surge in popularity and use, with bitcoin hitting a record high of more than $68,000 today. Market giants like Tesla and Twitter have carved their way into space and have adopted crypto in some way or the other.
Earlier during the year, Tesla accepted payments in BTC for its vehicles before Musk reversed the decision. Apple may also soon join the list but Tim hasn’t revealed any clear information yet.
