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Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently wrote an article in The Daily Mail in which he stated that he had long feared that Bitcoin was a ponzi scheme, and now his fears have been confirmed. Johnson, known for his messy hair and unfiltered photos, was ousted as prime minister in 2022 amid a public uproar within his conservative party following several high-profile scandals.
The article was also tweeted by Johnson’s official X account:
Johnson points out many reasons why he believes Bitcoin is a Ponzi scheme. They include the age-old argument that it has no intrinsic value, reliance on the “greater fools theory,” dependence on a constant influx of new investors, and story after story of fraud in the crypto space. Johnson argued that even physical collectibles like Pokémon cards can be a better investment than BTC itself.
Is Bitcoin a Ponzi Scheme?
Interestingly, Johnson’s tweet on X contains additional context. It says:
Context indicates that the textbook definition of a Ponzi scheme is that it promises a high rate of return with little downside and offers no value proposition. While Bitcoin is a volatile asset that can sometimes be tough on investors, at least according to the facts, economists and analysts, it is not a Ponzi scheme.
 
An investigation by the World Bank and the Swiss Federal Council found that Bitcoin is not a Ponzi scheme because there is no central operator to collect the money and there is no guaranteed payment to early investors from later investors.
Eric Posner, a University of Chicago economist and critic of Bitcoin, argued that a real Ponzi scheme requires fraud and a central organizer. Bitcoin has no promoters who promise guaranteed returns, so he described it more as a “collective fantasy” than a Ponzi scheme. Basically, Wikipedia has a lot going for it, but the consensus is that it’s not quite the blueprint Johnson has in mind.
The reaction of the Twitterati
Michael Saylor, CEO of Strategy, responded to Johnson:
One user took on the funny stuff:
Another user quipped:
While the general discussion was about whether Bitcoin is a Ponzi scheme, there was a lot of consensus in this thread that Boris Johnson is trying to determine whether the Prime Minister’s cryptocurrency is a scam or not.
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