Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson ignited a firestorm of controversy on September 20, 2023, after publishing an opinion piece in the Daily Mail that compared Bitcoin to a “Ponzi scheme” and argued that Pokémon trading cards were a more valuable asset than the world’s largest cryptocurrency.
Johnson’s scathing editorial, which drew on a cautionary tale about a constituent who lost thousands through a crypto-related scam, immediately triggered a wave of pushback from prominent figures in the Bitcoin community, including MicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor and other industry leaders.
TL;DR
- Former UK PM Boris Johnson called Bitcoin a “Ponzi scheme” in a Daily Mail op-ed
- Johnson claimed Bitcoin has less value than Pokémon cards
- Michael Saylor led the backlash: “Bitcoin has no issuer, no promoter, and no guaranteed return”
- The op-ed referenced a constituent who lost £20,000 ($26,474) in a crypto scam
- BTC was trading at $27,132 at the time, up 3.45% over the previous seven days
Johnson’s Argument: Anecdote Over Analysis
Johnson opened his opinion piece with the story of a friend who described a man from their neighborhood who had given £500 (approximately $661) to someone promising to “double his money” through Bitcoin investment. Over the next three and a half years, the victim continued paying additional fees to the scheme’s promoter, eventually sinking a total of £20,000 (approximately $26,474) without ever being able to retrieve his funds.
“He was struggling to pay his bills. He wasn’t the only one, said my friend. Other people in the neighborhood were going through the same nightmare,” Johnson wrote, using the anecdote to paint all of Bitcoin with a broad brush.
The former prime minister then pivoted to an unexpected comparison, arguing that Pokémon cards represent a more legitimate store of value than Bitcoin. “These curious little Japanese cartoon beasties seem to exercise the same fascination over the five-year-old mind as they did 30 years ago. The kids drool over them. They boast and squabble about them,” Johnson wrote. “Even if you remain pretty impervious to the charm of Pikachu, you can just about see why a decades-old Pikachu card is still a tradeable asset.”
The Bitcoin Community Fires Back
The reaction from the cryptocurrency industry was swift and emphatic. Michael Saylor, co-founder of MicroStrategy (now Strategy) — one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin — delivered a point-by-point rebuttal on social media.
“Bitcoin is not a Ponzi scheme. A Ponzi requires a central operator promising returns and paying early investors with funds from later ones,” Saylor stated. “Bitcoin has no issuer, no promoter, and no guaranteed return, just an open, decentralized monetary network driven by code and market demand.”
Pierre Rochard, CEO of The Bitcoin Bond Company, turned the tables on Johnson by arguing that the UK itself operates as a Ponzi scheme. The UK is a “giant Ponzi scheme” financed by debt, Rochard wrote, pointing to the country’s growing national debt and inflationary monetary policy.
Numerous other Bitcoin advocates and crypto executives joined the chorus, pointing out that Johnson’s criticism conflated an investment scam — which could involve any asset class — with the fundamental properties of Bitcoin itself. The victim in Johnson’s story was defrauded by a bad actor, not by Bitcoin’s protocol or network.
Market Context: Bitcoin Steady Amid the Noise
While the debate raged in opinion columns and on social media, Bitcoin itself traded with notable calm. According to CoinMarketCap data from September 20, 2023, BTC was priced at $27,132.01 with a market capitalization of approximately $528.8 billion. The cryptocurrency was up 3.45% over the past seven days, reflecting broader market optimism fueled in part by the Federal Reserve’s decision earlier that day to hold interest rates steady.
Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, traded at $1,622.89. The total crypto market cap stood at approximately $2.61 trillion, with Bitcoin dominance at 60.4%. The Fear & Greed Index registered at 45 — firmly in neutral territory.
A Pattern of Political Dismissal
Johnson’s comments echoed a familiar pattern of establishment politicians dismissing Bitcoin only to see the cryptocurrency continue to gain mainstream adoption. From Jamie Dimon’s annual predictions of Bitcoin’s demise to various central bankers calling it a “bubble,” such pronouncements have historically done little to slow Bitcoin’s trajectory.
What made Johnson’s intervention particularly notable was the timing. The op-ed came on the same day that the U.S. Federal Reserve acknowledged, through its decision to pause rate hikes, that the macroeconomic landscape was shifting — a shift that many Bitcoin advocates argue strengthens the case for a decentralized, non-sovereign store of value.
Why This Matters
Boris Johnson’s Ponzi scheme comparison matters not because it carries analytical weight, but because it represents a common misunderstanding that continues to shape public perception of Bitcoin. The conflation of crypto scams with Bitcoin itself remains one of the biggest hurdles to broader adoption and sensible regulation.
The story Johnson told — of a constituent defrauded through promises of doubled returns — describes a classic advance-fee fraud, not a flaw in Bitcoin’s design. By failing to distinguish between the cryptocurrency and the criminals who exploit the uninitiated, public figures like Johnson risk pushing people away from legitimate financial education and toward either blind skepticism or, ironically, further vulnerability to actual scams.
The robust response from figures like Saylor and Rochard also highlights how far the Bitcoin community has come in articulating its value proposition. What was once a niche internet subculture now includes publicly traded companies, institutional investors, and sophisticated financial products — none of which fit the Ponzi scheme framework that Johnson attempted to impose.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
boris johnson comparing btc to pokemon cards and somehow picking pokemon cards as the winner is the most on-brand take from that guy
imagine writing for the daily mail about crypto and your best comparison is pokemon cards. peak boomer energy
The guy lost 20k GBP over 3.5 years to a scammer and somehow thats Bitcoins fault? That person wasnt buying BTC, they were paying a fraudster.
classic politician move. find one anecdote of someone getting scammed and use it to dismiss an entire $500B asset class
saylor with the cleanest response: no issuer, no promoter, no guaranteed return. literally the opposite of a ponzi