- An 83-year-old Bitcoin investor has told a British newspaper that he doesn’t regret swapping some of his stocks for the cryptocurrency.
- David Browning told the Sunday Times that Bitcoin was “gaining traction” and he wanted to try something different
- Mr Browning bucks the trend of the typical Bitcoin investor
An 83-year-old Bitcoin investor has told a British newspaper that he doesn’t regret swapping some of his stocks for the cryptocurrency, stating that it has been “gaining traction” in recent years and that he understands the risks. Former electrician David Browning told the Sunday Times that he took some of his money out of stocks when they tanked in March and put it into Bitcoin instead, claiming that “some people think it’s going to treble in price in the next few years.”
The Myth-busting Bitcoin Investor
It is well known that the average Bitcoin investor is a millennial, meaning under the age of 40, with very few older generations being interested in cryptocurrency. This is most notable when you look at the professional investing world, where the likes of Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger are firmly anti-crypto whereas a large number of under-40 professional investors at least understand the concept of Bitcoin, with a growing number actively investing in it.
Mr Browning told the Sunday Times that he decided to sell some of the 20 funds in which he was invested, including the £2.2 billion Fidelity Special Situations fund and the £1.1 billion Merian UK Alpha funds, because he wanted to “try something different”. He initially bought £500 ($617) worth through eToro last month before buying another £1,000 ($1,235) worth more recently directly through an exchange, a transaction that required a phone call to his bank after they blocked his purchase.
Time For a Silver Wave of Bitcoin Investment?
Mr Browning has clearly done his research as he told the newspaper that he keeps the Bitcoin in a hardware wallet as opposed to many first timers who leave it on exchanges where it is at more risk. Pensioners in sleepy English countryside cottages aren’t the stereotypical Bitcoin investor, but if Mr Browning’s actions can spur a wave of silver haired investment then perhaps the stereotype will be irrevocably changed.
