Jim Cramer sells his bitcoin over quantum computing fears

CNBC host Jim Cramer says he's selling his bitcoin over quantum computing fears — the recommendation came from IBM CEO Arvind Krishna, who told Cramer to get "paranoid" about quantum computing's threat to cryptocurrencies within a three-to-four-year horizon.

Arvind Krishna knows quantum incredibly... He knows Bitcoin and quantum. And I'm going to sell mine

Krishna's comment aired on Cramer's show on Thursday, July 30, and Cramer announced his decision to sell on the following Friday's episode. The size of his bitcoin position has never been disclosed — there's no way to verify whether he actually holds coins or is actually selling them.

• Bitcoin was up about 1.7% at the time of the news, trading above $63,500 — even as the coin remains down roughly 27% year-to-date
• Bitget Wallet analyst Lacie Zhang called Krishna's three-to-four-year estimate "premature"
• Bitfinex analysts noted the industry is "far from demonstrating a quantum computer" capable of threatening bitcoin, with the timeline still highly debated

Cramer himself has a long and famously inconsistent track record on bitcoin: in December 2017 he dismissed it as "Monopoly money" and compared buying it to gambling; by late 2020 he said he'd bought around $10,000 worth and was adding to the position; by summer 2021 he reportedly sold most of his holdings following China's mining crackdown; in January 2024 he warned of a possible correction ahead of the bitcoin ETF launches; in early 2025 he called bitcoin a beneficial portfolio asset; and by July 2026 he called both bitcoin and gold "bad money" amid a rotation into high-growth tech stocks. It's exactly this inconsistency that fuels the "inverse Cramer" trade among traders — betting against his calls.

The quantum threat to bitcoin has been an active industry debate for months: we previously covered how nine companies including BlackRock and Coinbase pledged $15 million to quantum-proof bitcoin, and how Hong Kong banks scored just 2.3 out of 10 on regulator HKMA's first quantum readiness index. Against that backdrop, IBM's own position makes sense on its own terms too: the company has spent years positioning itself as a leader in quantum computing, so its CEO's warnings can be read as both a genuine risk assessment and part of the company's own quantum marketing push.

Nothing here should be taken as financial advice — just information to consider.