In March, O'Leary announced that he allocated 3% of his portfolio to bitcoin, though he has owned the cryptocurrency, along with ether and a few other digital coins, since 2017. He made this move after Canada and a few other countries' regulators eased restrictions on institutional buying of the cryptocurrency, he says.
"Now, bitcoin hitting new highs almost every week is proving that there are interests being brought out of all kinds of institutions now trying to figure out: Is it a currency? Is it an asset? Is a property?" O'Leary says. "... That gives you an idea of the institutional and individual interest." (While bitcoin has continued to hit new highs, the cryptocurrency is volatile, so it also can plunge to lows rather quickly.)