Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff has stated that Bitcoin at $78,000 is very expensive despite recent high. While many traders/investors see the price as attractive he argues that this thinking is misleading.
According to Schiff via a post on X, he noted that when you look at Bitcoin’s full history, its current price is still expensive and not a bargain.
He wrote,
“Anyone paying $78,000 to buy Bitcoin is not getting in cheap. Based on the historic price range in which Bitcoin has traded since inception, $78,000 is a very high price to pay. Just because some people paid more, that does not mean paying less than they did is a bargain.”
His statement comes as Bitcoin surged past the $78,000 level in early May 2026, to trade as high as $79,134, amid bullish optimism. Schiff’s critique taps into a long-running debate about how investors should evaluate cryptocurrency valuations.
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Schiff’s Long-Standing Bitcoin Skepticism
Peter Schiff, a vocal proponent of gold as a store of value, has long criticized Bitcoin since its early days. He has consistently argued that Bitcoin lacks intrinsic value, produces no cash flow, and functions more like a speculative bubble than digital gold.
By referencing Bitcoin’s entire price history which includes years of trading well below $1,000 and even below $100 Schiff says the current price remains elevated.
He dismisses the common bull-market argument that a pullback from recent highs (presumably above $100,000) automatically creates an attractive entry point.
His comment was however met with criticism with some users on X, saying that Bitcoin is still a relatively young asset class. Many view its price appreciation as a reflection of growing adoption, and institutional interest.
Critics further noted that Schiff has called Bitcoin overvalued at far lower levels, including under $100, $1,000, and $10,000. In their view, his consistent bearishness has caused him to miss one of the strongest performing assets of the past decade.
Some replies highlighted the irony of Schiff’s logic when applied to gold itself, which has also risen dramatically from historical averages. Gold recently trading near all-time highs is still promoted by Schiff as a strong buy.
Current Market Context
As of May 2026, Bitcoin has experienced significant volatility. After climbing to new record highs in the previous bull phase, the price has corrected above the $79,000 zone.
Bulls see this as a healthy consolidation and potential accumulation area before the next leg up, while skeptics like Schiff see it as evidence that the asset remains in bubble territory.
Traditional financial analysts often side with Schiff’s broader concerns about fiat currency debasement and speculative manias, but many have warmed to Bitcoin as a diversification tool in recent years, especially following ETF approvals and corporate adoption.
At the heart of Schiff’s argument is a fundamental philosophical difference, he believes sound money must have intrinsic properties (scarcity, durability, divisibility, and established industrial or monetary use), which he says Bitcoin fails to satisfy beyond scarcity and portability.
Whether Bitcoin eventually proves to be a transformative technology or a speculative frenzy will likely be determined by its performance over the coming decade, not any single price point.