Adam Back Tells Crypto Investors To Buy Bitcoin And Drop Altcoins

Blockstream chief executive Adam Back says efficient markets are finally pricing memecoins, smart contract tokens and other "air tokens" toward zero.

Adam Back Repeats His Bitcoin Recommendation

Back, the inventor of Hashcash and one of Bitcoin's most outspoken maximalists, made his case in posts shared on X across May 23 and 24. He told followers to "buy bitcoin, hodl, repeat," and said he expected the efficient market hypothesis to value alternative coins near zero. His only surprise, he noted, is how long the repricing took to arrive.

His argument rests on three absences.

The tokens he targets produce no cash flows for holders and draw no meaningful blockspace demand, and they hold no durable advantage over rivals.

Without any of those traits, Back contends, there is no rational basis for a price above zero. He has made the same call since the previous market cycle.

Bitcoin (BTC) gives that view some recent backing. The asset slid to a four-week low after a delayed Clarity Act vote, then rebounded sharply once a broad macro rally took hold, while most altcoins failed to hold any gains from the same catalyst.

Why the Air Token Argument Matters

Back's diagnosis leads to a single prescription. If most tokens trade above their fundamental value, he reasons, Bitcoin stands apart as the only asset he views as genuinely scarce and decentralized.