With fiat currencies losing strength and tangible assets gaining momentum, Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, suggests that dedicating 15% of a portfolio to Bitcoin could reshape investment strategies for turbulent times.
Speaking on The Master Investor Podcast with Wilfred Frost on July 27, Dalio addressed the challenges of asset allocation in an era of swelling debt and currency erosion. He singled out Bitcoin as an increasingly relevant hedge in today’s shifting financial environment.
Drawing parallels between current monetary trends and the currency weaknesses of the 1930s and 1970s, Dalio argued that traditional money is entering a prolonged decline—boosting the case for hard assets. When asked whether Bitcoin qualifies as a sound holding in such conditions, he described it as both “a medium of exchange” and “a storehold of wealth,” stressing the latter as its most critical role.
In outlining his portfolio strategy, Dalio advised that an investor without strong biases—seeking to maximize returns while balancing risk—should hold roughly 15% of their wealth in gold or bitcoin.
Dalio made his stance clear: “I strongly prefer gold over Bitcoin, but the choice is yours.” While detractors point to Bitcoin’s volatility and regulatory vulnerabilities, advocates highlight its decentralized structure and capped supply as potential safeguards against the decline of fiat money.
Athough he acknowledged Bitcoin’s usefulness, Dalio expressed greater caution toward it than gold. “Many see bitcoin as a form of money,” he said, but he questioned its suitability as a reserve currency, citing transparency issues and insufficient transactional privacy. Sharing his own allocation, he remarked, “In my portfolio, I hold gold and a small amount of bitcoin—but not much.”
Placing his view in a historical frame, Dalio noted that in past eras marked by heavy debt burdens and geopolitical turmoil, traditional currencies often lost value simultaneously, making alternative stores of wealth essential.
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