Bitcoin's Popularity Soars, Finance Professor Jeremy Siegel Warns The Fed Is Missing Out

JAKARTA – A professor from the Wharton School, Jeremy Siegel expressed his views on dollar inflation, Bitcoin, and the Fed's recent efforts to defend the US dollar. Siegel expressed his views to CNBC on Friday last week.

Reported by Bitcoin.com News, Siegel is the Russell E. Palmer Emeritus Professor of Finance at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on demographics, financial markets, long-term asset returns, and macroeconomics.

Previously, the Fed Chair, Jerome Powell, said he would raise interest rates for the first time this March. Siegel responded to the decision from the Federal Reserve chairman. He was disappointed in Powell, saying the Fed had fallen behind and was forced to make more aggressive policies.

"They have to do more than that ... I'm actually disappointed that Chairman Powell doesn't see history that this is not the time for us to slow down," said Professor Siegel.

“The Fed has been very wrong over the past year. I mean, all this temporary inflation. Look at the protection they put in place for inflation last year — well below what it actually was through December," he added.

Given the current situation in Ukraine, Siegel considered the Fed's decision to be a "big policy mistake" aimed at slowing interest rate hikes.

"The Fed has been very wrong and they have to catch up and they really have to admit that they have to face a difficult and unpleasant decision (bite the bullet) here."

In response to the skyrocketing popularity of Bitcoin that could potentially threaten the US dollar, Siegel encouraged the Fed to take decisive action to defend the US dollar.

“We are talking about a bitcoin takeover. We have to defend the dollar,” said Siegel.

Previously, Siegel had stated that Bitcoin had replaced gold as a store of value for millennials. He also warned that the Federal Reserve is "so far behind the curve that we have a lot of inflation built into it."

Therefore, the Warthon School finance professor suggested the Fed should "raise interest rates higher than the market expects."