The top executive at Sanders Morris Harris, a white-shoe investment banking firm on Wall Street, is taking back previous comments he had made about Bitcoin. George Ball is a respected personality not only on Wall Street but also in many financial industry circles, and he recently sat down to an interview where he explained why he is now recommending the addition of Bitcoin to investment portfolios.

Mr. Ball acknowledged that he has been diametrically opposed to blockchain projects and cryptocurrency trading, but he is currently worried that the United States government is taking too much of a leading role in stimulating the national economy. History shows that bailing out banks and large companies often results in a dilution of the U.S. dollar, and this is when holding Bitcoin could favor smart investors. In other words, Mr. Ball is talking about hedging against future inflation and loss of currency value.

The comments made by Mr. Ball illustrates how the number of Bitcoin naysayers is being reduced as more high-profile financial commentators change their minds about the digital currency markets. The majority of "bitcoin naysayers" are not "real" Bitcoin owners, but rather financial traders. According to data collected by major online exchange platforms, most of these naysayers are male and between the ages of 40 and 55 years. These are not people who had Bitcoins before, but were introduced to the digital currency after spending $500 on one.

Bitcoin and related crypto assets remain scarce compared to the global stock market, with the number declining to around 12% in 2015, but things are changing as younger traders enter the digital currency markets. For example, there is a growing recognition that Bitcoin is an efficient asset for high volatility, which is why bitcoin value will continue to appreciate as more traders start to buy. But even this is not enough to justify investment in the cryptocurrencies, which are highly volatile and therefore should not be considered as investment but merely store of value.

We should not be surprised to learn that more financial experts such as Mr. Ball will come forward to issue some sort of Bitcoin endorsement in the future.