Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has once again sparked discussion on X over the debate between gold and Bitcoin, taking a dig at critic Peter Schiff. Known for his sharp remarks, CZ pointed out one of gold’s key limitations compared to digital assets: its verifiability.
CZ Sparks the Fort Knox Discussion
This comes amid the growing curiosity over the long-delayed audit of Fort Knox’s gold reserves.
One of the users questioned “What ever happened to the audit at Fort Knox?”
To this CZ responded saying “Gold is difficult to verify”. He also mentioned Peter Schiff in the post, taking a jab at him. Peter Schiff is a strong proponent of gold, and has often criticized Bitcoin, calling it “a speculative asset with no intrinsic value.”
The United States Treasury reportedly holds 261.5 million troy ounces of gold, with 147.3 million ounces at Fort Knox. Reports suggest that the last full audit of these reserves took place decades ago, leading to calls for more transparency.
Verifying Crypto vs Gold
CZ’s remarks show that, compared to gold, cryptocurrencies offer better verifiability and transparency. Verification of gold is not real-time or public. Access is limited, audits are infrequent, and records cannot be transparent.
However, cryptocurrencies are built on blockchain technology, which provides a fully transparent, real-time record of every transaction. This shows that the verifiability of gold is limited, compared to the open, traceable nature of digital assets.
The Tokenized Gold Debate
Just recently, Schiff announced plans to launch a tokenized gold product, saying that gold is ideal to put on a blockchain because it could deliver the benefits that Bitcoin promises but cannot.
However, CZ quickly pushed back saying that tokenized gold is not truly “on-chain.” Instead, it relies on trusting a third party to actually hold and deliver the gold. He had also warned that external factors like management changes, delays, geopolitical crises, or even wars could also affect these holdings.
CZ has also said previously that while gold is valuable, it is not practical for everyday use.
This shows that while gold has long been a trusted store of value, its verification and transparency lag behind modern digital assets.
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