Charles Schwab incoming CEO: ‘I feel silly’ for not buying crypto

Charles Schwab’s incoming CEO, Rick Wurster, said he felt “silly” for not buying bitcoin as the token edges toward $100 million.

Feeling a tinge of regret for not investing in bitcoin as it approaches $100,000? Charles Schwab’s incoming CEO is in the same boat.

“Crypto has certainly caught many’s attention, and they’ve made a lot of money doing it,” Rick Wurster, the bank’s current president, told Bloomberg in a Thursday interview. “I have not bought crypto, and now I feel silly.”

Wurster explained why he’s been reluctant to invest in crypto.

“Well, I think what’s holding me back is just a question around the true value of crypto,” he said. “I like to invest in stocks, and with stocks there’s cash flows you can rely upon, there’s dividends that accrue to you. With crypto, it’s less certain what that will be and it’s less certain how to value it.”

Wurster said that he supports clients who want to invest in crypto, which has soared to new highs following Donald Trump’s reelection. Bitcoin was trading hundreds of dollars away from the $100,000 mark on Friday as Trump reportedly considers candidates for a new “crypto czar” in his administration.

“I’ve talked to a lot of our investors who tell me I’m completely missing the boat and tell me all the great things about crypto, and you know what? They’ve been right, not me, because it keeps going up,” Wurster said.

Firms, including Andreessen Horowitz, are optimistic about another crypto boom with hopes of more lenient crypto policies under the Trump administration, as opposed to the stricter regulatory environment under Biden.

Although Schwab already offers crypto-linked ETFs and crypto futures, Wurster said the company will move toward spot trading, which would help it compete directly in the sector with firms like Fidelity Investments and Robinhood Markets.

“We will get into spot crypto when the regulatory environment changes, and we do anticipate that it will change, and we’re getting ready for that eventuality,” Wurster said.