Ray Dalio recommends diversified investments, but not in Bitcoin

Ray Dalio, multi-billionaire and founder of investment firm Bridgewater Associates, said that investors shouldn't move away from traditional markets.

The multi-billionaire was interviewed at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he advised investors to build a global and diversified portfolio in the current market, while increasing participation in the equity markets.

Dalio has admitted to owning Bitcoin, saying that he does not consider this resource neither a medium of exchange nor a store of value.

Cash is trash

Dalio acknowledged the widespread concerns about the global economic recession, and spoke of the risks posed to the liquid economy using the provocative slogan "cash is trash". He identifies the problem with governments' ability to print money at will, which he assumes they will be forced to do during a market downturn.

For this reason, according to Dalio, it is not recommended to switch to cash just before a possible fall in the market.

Dalio's company, Bridgewater, manages approximately $ 160 billion. This is not the first time that he says investors should not be on the sidelines, as early as 2018 he said that those who hold liquidity would "feel rather stupid" for losing the race to the market.

The billionaire encourages investors to maintain a balance in their investments, advising them to always allocate "a certain amount of gold" in their portfolios.

Bitcoin according to Ray Dalio

His position on Bitcoin (BTC) has been much more negative, and highlighting the fact that it cannot currently be used as money yet, he said: "There are two purposes to owning money, to use it as a medium of exchange or as a deposit of wealth, and Bitcoin, at the moment, is not effective in any of these cases.

"He added that Bitcoin's volatility makes it unattractive for serious investments, while a project like Libra could be a better option. Working out his preference for gold as a store of value, he noted that central banks are some of the largest holders of metals.

Dalio underlined the fact that banks are currently focusing on gold as a reserve, the only safe value because it has already been tested and real, unlike the Bitcoin digital currency.

Bitcoin and the global economy

Bitcoin is often advertised as "digital gold", a reserve resource independent of government control. But while many believe the theses that frame Bitcoin as a safe haven, its performance so far has not indicated a significant correlation with global markets.

It appears to have a slightly positive correlation with gold, but the indices are small enough to be attributed to coincidences.

However, these may still be settling issues due to the relative novelty of cryptocurrencies.

As noted by Duke University professor Campbell Harvey, the sample size is still too small. Over thousands of years of history, gold has not always been a safe haven.