Peter Brandt says he’s not picking crypto right now, in terms of opportunity

When it comes to choosing between blockchain and more traditional investments, the grass may be greener in the stock market, said Peter Brandt — the CEO of proprietary trading firm, Factor LLC. He went on to note, however, that it all depends on people's choice of base currency. 

Brandt was clear that he had transitioned into mostly U.S. dollars while scoping out his next moves. "Right now I think the opportunities are greater in the equities market than they are in the crypto market," he told Cointelegraph on Sept. 9. 

"I just don't see myself really speculating much in crypto," he continued, attributing his mindset to that of his generation. A participant in traditional market trading since 1976, Brandt built Factor LLC in 1980, decades before the invention of blockchain-based assets.

"I'm in a generation that defines net worth in U.S. dollar terms," Brandt said, noting USD as his standard method of asset storage. "The younger generation, many of them, their home currency is Bitcoin, or whatever it is — I mean, whatever their pet rock is," he noted, in reference to a fad during the 1970s that saw people paying money for rocks sold as pets in boxes. 

Stacking sats refers to crypto participants storing wealth in Bitcoin, while also putting trading and other profits back into Bitcoin for longer-term holding. Much of the industry also views the asset as a hedge or store of value, hinting at a possible generational shift from the U.S. dollar's role in past decades. 

"I want to lay low and look for opportunities," Brandt said of his current mindset. "I see greater opportunities right now in selective equities — not broad market, but selected equities — and lesser so in crypto."

Mainstream assets have soared in 2020, so Brandt's thought process is not out of line with the current stock market atmosphere.