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The cryptocurrency community sparked a heated debate this week after former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson described Bitcoin as a “giant Ponzi scheme” in a newspaper commentary. Johnson’s remarks, published in the Daily Mail on Friday, March 14, 2026, prompted immediate rebuttals from prominent figures in the digital asset sector.
Johnson’s commentary centered on an anecdote involving an Oxfordshire villager who reportedly gave £500 (about $661) to a pub acquaintance who promised to double the investment using Bitcoin. Johnson said the individual spent three and a half years trying to recover his funds while paying various fees, ultimately losing approximately £20,000 (about $26,450) and “struggling to pay his bills.”
From that story, Johnson argued that Bitcoin lacks intrinsic value. He contrasted it with gold and even Pokémon trading cards, suggesting those alternatives have tangible or cultural worth. He also questioned the credibility of the monetary framework associated with Satoshi Nakamoto, whose identity remains unknown.
In his commentary, Johnson asked: “Who do we talk to if they decrypt the crypto?”
Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman of Strategy, which holds large corporate Bitcoin positions, responded directly to Johnson’s claims. Saylor said Bitcoin is not a Ponzi scheme, arguing that Ponzi schemes require a central operator promising returns and paying early investors with funds from later participants.
Saylor’s position was that Bitcoin does not fit that model because it has “no issuer, no promoter, and no guaranteed return,” describing it instead as “an open, decentralized monetary network driven by code and market demand.”
Pierre Rochard, CEO of The Bitcoin Bond Company, also weighed in, suggesting that the UK government could be viewed as operating like a “giant Ponzi scheme” through debt financing.
On X, a community note appeared beneath Johnson’s post, stating that Ponzi schemes typically involve artificially inflated returns with minimal risk, while Bitcoin “has no issuer and its value is purely determined by the free market.” The note also emphasized that “the code is totally public and opt-in.”
Other commentators pointed to Bitcoin’s predetermined supply ceiling and its transparent, open-source architecture as key differences from traditional Ponzi structures. BitMEX Research responded to Johnson’s question about leadership with the statement: “Nobody is in charge.”
Several users also used memes to criticize central banks’ monetary expansion policies during the pandemic period.
Johnson’s editorial and the subsequent responses coincided with the Bitcoin network mining its 20 millionth coin, a milestone that highlighted Bitcoin’s immutable maximum supply of 21 million.
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