Jim Cramer Plans to Sell Bitcoin Over Quantum Fears as BTC Rises 1.6%

Former hedge fund manager and CNBC “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer said he plans to sell all his Bitcoin due to quantum computing fears. 

“I’m going to sell mine [Bitcoin],” said Cramer during a Friday Mad Money episode, citing quantum computing concerns that IBM Chairman and CEO Arvind Krishna had raised in on his show the previous day. 

During Thursday’s episode, Krishna told Cramer that he should get “paranoid” about quantum computing’s threat to cryptocurrencies in the next three to four years.

Bitcoin’s (BTC) price was up roughly 1.7% on Tuesday to trade above $63,500, but was down 27% year-to-date, according to TradingView data. 

Some crypto investors celebrated Cramer’s remarks, referencing the popular “inverse Cramer” meme and investment philosophy, which ironically seeks to capitalize on the opposite of the investment calls made by the former fund manager.

“If Cramer is selling, it’s time to start buying,” commented GRIT Trading Academy founder Archie Spencer. 

“Every time Cramer says sell, I add to my position. Been doing it since 2018. The inverse Cramer index remains undefeated,” wrote pseudonymous crypto investor Bitcoin & Barbells.

BTC/USD, year-to-date chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Whale wallets start selling as trading activity declines 

Meanwhile, large investors are selling their Bitcoin holdings as crypto market liquidity is drying up.

On Monday, whale wallet ‘bc1qpt’ transferred its entire holdings of 16,400 Bitcoin, worth about $1 billion, to a new wallet address following seven months of inactivity, according to blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain.

The transfer occurred shortly after daily cryptocurrency trading activity across the leading 44 spot crypto exchanges fell to $15 billion last week, marking the lowest level of 2026, according to data from crypto intelligence platform Kaiko shared by the Kobeissi Letter.

Source: The Kobeissi Letter

“This marks a -70% decline from January peak levels, ” wrote the Kobeissi Letter in a Tuesday X post, adding that “crypto market liquidity is drying up.” 

Related: Nearly 10% of Bitcoin supply is ‘structurally unsafe’ from quantum breakthrough: Glassnode

Industry watchers divided over quantum threat’s timeline

Industry watchers are divided over the timeline of a quantum computing breakthrough. In November 2025, Blockstream CEO Adam Back said that Bitcoin faces no meaningful quantum threat for at least the next 20 to 40 years. 

In contrast, analysts at Bernstein said that Bitcoin has about three to five years to prepare for a post-quantum security upgrade, in an April report.  

“Back’s assessment is the more accurate and measured view: practical quantum threats capable of breaking Bitcoin’s cryptography remain highly unlikely within the next decade,” Lacie Zhang, research analyst at Bitget Wallet, told Cointelegraph.

Magazine: Bitcoin’s quantum upgrade path: What BIP-360 changes and what it does not