Peter Schiff isn’t a household name, but he is very well-known among economists, professional investors, and journalists. He rose to fame when he warned the United States that its policies put the economy in danger. That’s just a part of his story, though.
What Is Peter Schiff Known for?
Peter Schiff’s career has included several unique roles. Among economic intellectuals and journalists, he’s best known as one of the few people who predicted the Great Recession. In 2005, Schiff started warning of an impending economic collapse. He appeared on several television and radio shows to spread his opinion. In 2007, he released a book named Crash Proof that criticized U.S. financial policies.
At the time, many dismissed his ideas and started calling him “Dr. Doom” because of his pessimism. While he was incorrect about some results of the Great Recession – for instance, he overestimated the role hyperinflation would cause – he did pinpoint low consumer savings, high real estate prices, and loose lending practices as reasons the U.S. economy would struggle.
Schiff disagreed with the Obama Administration’s plan to put the economy back on track. He preferred loosening regulations so the market could function naturally. Obama’s economic recovery plan involved increasing regulations to prevent the unnecessary conditions that led to the recession.
Schiff is also known as the CEO of Euro Pacific Capital, a commentator on television and radio shows, the author of at least six books, and an advisor to Republican campaigns, including Ron Paul’s 2008 presidential campaign.
How Did Peter Schiff Make His Money?
Peter Schiff has spent most of his career working as a stockbroker and fund manager. He got his first job as a stockbroker at Shearson Lehman Brothers.
A few years later, he purchased an inactive firm and turned it into Euro Pacific Capital. The brokerage firm has held headquarters in several cities, including Los Angeles, Darien, Connecticut, and Westport, Connecticut.
Euro Pacific Capital also has branches across the U.S.
What Does Peter Schiff Invest in?
It seems likely that Peter Schiff invests in the same assets as Euro Pacific Capital. Even if he doesn’t invest directly in the company’s five fund options, he is tethered to his company’s investment advice.
That means you can look at Euro Pacific Capital’s funds to get an idea of which investments look attractive to Schiff.
The EuroPac International Value Fun holds 46 assets with a $74.4 billion weighted average market cap. Its 10 most prominent holdings are:
- British American Tobacco PLC
- Adidas AG
- Tencent Holdings Ltd
- Sonic Healthcare Ltd
- Bank of Nova Scotia
- Barrick Gold Corp
- Unilever PLC
- Equinor ASA
- Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd
The EuroPac International Dividend Income Fund has 62 holdings with a $57.4 billion weighted average market cap. Its largest assets include:
- British American Tobacco PLC
- Shell PLC
- Engie SA
- Vodafone Group PLC
- Barrick Gold Corp
- Roche Holding AG
- Bayer AG
- Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp
- Enel SpA
- BP PLC
The EuroPac International Bond Fund invests primarily in government assets, such as currencies. It also contains some corporate and supranational assets. Its top 10 currency allocations are:
- Mexican Peso (MXN)
- Indonesian Rupiah (IDR)
- Norwegian Krone (NOK)
- Euro (EUR)
- Indian Rupee (INR)
- Canadian Dollar (CAD)
- Philippine Peso (PHP)
- Brazilian Real (BRL)
- Singapore Dollar (SGD)
- Colombian Peso (COP)
The EuroPac Gold Fund puts more than 80% of its investments in gold. Its top holdings include:
- Franco-Nevada Corp
- Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd
- Pan American Silver Corp
- Wheaton Precious Metals Corp
- Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd
- B2Gold Corp
- OceanaGold Corp
- Fortuna Silver Mines Inc
- Barrick Gold Corp
- Royal Gold Inc
Euro Pacific Capital also has a fund focused on emerging markets. The EP Emerging Markets Fund has 76 holdings with a $41.1 billion weighted average market cap. Its top assets include:
- Tencent Holdings Ltd
- Ace Hardware Indonesia Tbk PT
- British American Tobacco PLC
- Mr Price Group Ltd
- International Games System Co
- FULING ZHACAI
- Balsa Mexicana de Valores SAB
- Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk PT
- Castrol India LTD
- HAITIAN INT’L
From these funds, it’s clear that Schiff prefers to invest in real goods. He appears to allocate most of capital to companies with histories of excellent performance. Doing so limits risk and helps generate steady returns. He also puts a portion of investment capital into more speculative assets, which can earn higher ROIs.
Why Did Peter Schiff’s Bank Fail?
A few hypotheses explain why Euro Pacific Bank failed.
According to Schiff, The New York Times and other media outlets made false allegations against his bank. For example, reporters claimed that Euro Pacific Bank had closed over 5,000 accounts for compliance issues, effectively accusing the bank of money laundering.
Schiff denies the claims but says they have made it impossible for the bank to succeed because Euro Pacific Bank had been given a bad reputation that soured relationships with potential partners.
It’s also possible that Euro Pacific Bank failed because it made serious accounting mistakes. Schiff admits that the bank used client deposits to pay for operating expenses. The mistake, which he calls “inadvertent,” put the bank $4 million behind.
Schiff claims to have dedicated $10 million of his own money to remedy the accounting issue. Still, the mistake could have sullied the bank’s reputation before journalists started their investigations.
When Schiff attempted to sell the bank, Puerto Rico’s authorities stopped the sale. The IRS said Euro Pacific Bank should be de-registered. Schiff’s lawyer says that the US federal government has not started an investigation into the bank and its operations.
Why Is Peter Schiff Against Bitcoin?
Peter Schiff has long been critical of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. His biggest complaint is that Bitcoin isn’t a real asset because it has no intrinsic value. With real estate, you can rent the property to earn money. With stocks, you can collect dividends. With commodities like oil, you can sell the product to someone who wants to generate electricity or gasoline.
However, Bitcoin only has value because people are buying it. He thinks of the cryptocurrency as a short-term hype that will ultimately lose all, or most of, its value. He frequently refers to Bitcoin as a “bubble.” This bubble, however, is more dangerous than those that occur in real estate and tech because Bitcoin doesn’t have an underlying value. When a housing bubble bursts, owners still have an asset with some worth. When the Bitcoin bubble bursts, he argues, it will have no value to owners.
Interestingly, Schiff owns some Bitcoin. His ire for the cryptocurrency only grew stronger when he lost access to his wallet in 2020. He claims that the wallet was corrupted, which made it impossible for him to access the digital currency.
Soon after Schiff made his statement, Erik Voorhees rebutted Schiff’s account. According to Voorhees, he helped Schiff create his Bitcoin account. While setting up the crypto wallet, Schiff failed to write down his recovery phrase, which would let him access the wallet if he forgot his password.
Voorhees says Schiff forgot the wallet’s password and could never recover the digital asset because he didn’t record the recovery phrase. Voorhees likened this to blaming an ounce of gold for getting dropped on a sidewalk and lost. The scenario wouldn’t mean anything about the value of gold. It would only reveal the owner’s negligence.
Peter Schiff’s Net Worth
Peter Schiff likely has a net worth of about $70 million.
Is Peter Schiff a Republican?
Peter Schiff is a Republican. In fact, he ran as a Republican for a 2010 U.S. Senate seat. He lost the primary to Linda McMahon, whom he endorsed after conceding the primary race.
Where Did Peter Schiff Go to College?
Peter Schiff attended the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance.
Who Is Peter Schiff’s Wife?
Peter Schiff is married to Lauren Schiff. The couple live with their two children in Puerto Rico.
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