Peter Schiff Says Bitcoin Surprised Him By Holding Gains As He Still Expects New Lows

• Peter Schiff said he’s surprised gold surrendered its post-buyback gains while Bitcoin held onto them.
• He still expects Bitcoin to test new lows once the tech-led stock rally stalls.
• He warned that the Nov. 3 midterms could turn Washington against Bitcoin.

Gold advocate Peter Schiff admitted he’s surprised Bitcoin (BTC) has held onto gains that gold has given back, but still expects the cryptocurrency to fall to new lows.

Schiff made the comments in an interview with Scott Melker on his podcast, The Wolf Of All Streets, published on Sunday. Both assets surged after the Treasury announced that it would double its long-dated bond buybacks to at least $4 billion per operation.

Bitcoin was trading at about $60,000 before that statement and is now close to $85,000, Schiff added. But on the news, gold shot up to around $4,700, then has since cooled off to around $4,000, he added. “I do expect it to make new lows. I just would have thought it would have happened already,” he said.

He said that Bitcoin is riding the same technology rally that has boosted the most large-cap stocks. Schiff said that he expects it to fall when the rally fades. 

Bitcoin’s price was trading around $83,790, up 1% in the last 24 hours. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around BTC remained in the ‘bearish’ zone, accompanied by ‘low’ chatter levels over the past day.

Strategy Buying Called Symbolic

Schiff also said Strategy (MSTR), the largest corporate holder of BTC, sold Bitcoin earlier this year as part of a plan to pay dividends on its preferred stock. As of now, it has bought back some of its Stretch preferred stock (STRC) and started buying Bitcoins again in small amounts, which he called "it’s all window dressing."

Midterms Seen As Headwind

According to Schiff, the midterm elections on November 3 could have an impact on Bitcoin. He claimed that Republicans have made Bitcoin a partisan issue, whereas Democrats see it as a source of funding and votes for their opponents.

“Bitcoin is a Republican thing now,” Schiff said. He predicted a Democratic Congress would target the industry. “Washington is going to be more of an enemy than a friend when it comes to Bitcoin,” he said.

Adding to that, Schiff said he doesn't want the government to back Bitcoin through a strategic reserve. “I want the government to stay neutral,” he said.

Read also: Ledger Wallet Spy Implant Scare Spreads To Europe As Crypto Losses Top $86M: Report

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.