The CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management says that the controversial cryptocurrency project Helium can “build intrinsic value over time.”
One of TradFi’s better-known investors said on Monday that he has changed his mind and now supports crypto, though his choice of the project may be questionable.
Bill Ackman said in a series of tweets that he likes Helium, which is a decentralized Wi-Fi mesh network. Helium has been accused of lying about its relationship with DISH Network, which it said would give it access to its 5G spectrum, and of using fake endorsements from tech giants like Salesforce and mobility company Lime to give its network credibility.
As for Helium’s tokenomics, Forbes reports that the network has a history of favoring its founders and insiders and using fake clients to increase their payout of tokens.
In September, the Helium community voted overwhelmingly to replace its blockchain with Solana. They also said that Helium would be added to the SOL phone. Even though Solana has been going down, the founder of Helium has promised to stick with Solana.
Ackman tweeted, “Despite crypto’s ability to make fraud easier, with sensible regulation and oversight, crypto technology may one day have a positive impact on the economy and society on par with that of the telephone and the internet.”
Ackman said that after looking at a number of “interesting crypto projects,” he started to “understand how a token could build intrinsic value over time” and move past the speculative nature of a modern-day “tulip mania.”
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Over time, a two-sided market for HNT [Helium’s token] develops in which miners buy hotspots and place them around the world to earn tokens.
In turn, users buy HNT tokens so that they can use the network. “The more people want the network, the more people want HNT,” tweeted Ackman.
Data from CoinGecko shows that HNT has lost nearly 95% of its value in the last year. Now, the token is worth $2.23.
HeliumTracker.io says that the average daily earnings per hotspot are now 0.06 HNT, or 13 cents. The price of a hotspot ranges from $200 to $400.
Another HNT tracker, Helium Board, shows that the top earners on the platform make between 2.4 and 2.6 HNT a day, which is less than $6. Helium Board says that Eager Orchid Whale is one of the top earners. He has a network of 155 hotspots that help him earn 2.48 HNT ($5.48) every day.
Ackman said he has a stake in ORIGYN Foundation, a relatively unknown project that makes vague references to NFTs on its website and says it “brings together industry leaders from art, luxury, media, entertainment, sports, and more with token holders.”
He also said he has a stake in Goldfinch Finance, a lending platform that says it pays 17% on USDC deposits and has nearly $100 million in active loans but only earns $100,000 in protocol revenue.
“Goldfinch yields come from real-world lending, and investments are secured off-chain. This makes them very different from the highly volatile DeFi lending you might be used to,” the site says.
Data from CoinGecko shows that its token is now worth $0.63, which is less than its all-time high of $32.
