On February 26, 2014, financial advisor and radio personality Dave Ramsey made a now-infamous statement about Bitcoin — calling it “wacko,” worthless, and comparable to gravel or the Iraqi dinar.
In a segment on his show, Ramsey dismissed the world’s largest cryptocurrency’s potential, saying, “What is Bitcoin? Bitcoin is a currency on the internet. It has no value except to the extent someone else will take it from you as value… So Bitcoin is the Iraqi dinar of the internet.”
Ramsey doubled down with harsher words, “It’s a really good way to turn a million dollars into nothing,” and, “It’s not real money because it’s not… a stable currency that has any kind of a system that backs it.”
He went on to mock crypto investors, saying, “All of a sudden, one of these computer nerds just flips the switch, the whole freaking thing’s gone.”
“And so the little hipster, techie guys are sitting in front of the building with a sign that says, ‘Where’s my money?’ Well, honey, you never had any.”
“You can trade gravel out of your driveway as long as you can get away with it… Just because you made some money doing it doesn’t mean that it was a bright idea.”
“Let’s just go ahead and add you Bitcoin people to the mix. You’re stupid. You’re gonna lose your money.”
Bitcoin was trading at approximately $567 on that day. If someone had invested just $1000 in BTC at the time, they would have received roughly 1.763 BTC.
As of March 29, 2025, that same $1000 investment would now be worth over $148,500 — a nearly 14,750% return.
While Ramsey has since softened his stance slightly, calling Bitcoin a “speculative investment” in recent years, this 2014 clip remains one of the most iconic examples of legacy finance dismissing crypto in its early days.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency investments are highly volatile and risky. Always conduct your own research before making any investment decisions.
