“Mr. Wonderful” Kevin O’Leary of SharkTank got some high praise for his comments in support of the Trump Administration’s trade actions in pursuit of a free trade agreement with China. President Trump tweeted. “Thank you Mr. Wonderful, I like you too!”
Kevin O’Leary of SharkTank on Trump’s trade policy: It’s starting to work.
O’Leary later commented on Trump’s tweet and elaborated on why Trump is working to level the playing field for America doing business in China:
I was talking about the policy this administration is putting forward. Bottom line is everything has been tried for 17 years while I have actually been doing business in China. Nothing has worked to level playing field. I like what this administration is doing by trying new ideas. Let’s try something else. That’s what I’m talking about. Because to me, it’s starting to work. Everything else has not worked. I’ll keep it very simple. I don’t have a level playing field in China. They get to use our markets in ways that we can’t use theirs. That’s not okay anymore.
Kevin O’Leary of SharkTank: I Like What This Administration Is Doing With Trade
Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary is not a fan of Bitcoin. He talked about a transaction where he tried to buy property using Bitcoin in Switzerland. “Try and do a transaction of $100,000 in Bitcoin,” says O’Leary. “I tried to do some real estate in Switzerland with it once. It is a useless currency. They want a guarantee that the value comes back to US currency at $10 million. You have to somehow hedge the risk of Bitcoin. That means it’s not a real currency.”
Kevin O’Leary, a successful entrepreneur and Shark Tank host, discusses the difficulties of using Bitcoin as a currency on CNBC:
Bitcoin is Worthless
Try and do a transaction of $100,000 in Bitcoin,” says Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary. I tried to do some real estate in Switzerland with it once. It is a useless currency. That’s what I believe. I realize that people have different opinions but to me it’s garbage. You can’t get in and out of it in large amounts. Some will say, “Yes you can.” But what happens is the receiver wants some guarantee. Let’s say you want to buy a piece of real estate for $10 million in Switzerland and they don’t want to use the traditional transfer system.
This is illegal by the way because you have to disclose why you’re transferring $10 million to Switzerland. They want a guarantee that the value comes back to US currency at $10 million. You have to somehow hedge the risk of Bitcoin. That means it’s not a real currency. That means the receiver is not willing to take the risk of the volatility it has. It’s worthless. I believe that.
Bitcoin is Worthless, Says Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary
Sometimes short and sweet is the right way to give advice and SharkTank’s Kevin O’Leary offered up a great short video on how to give a successful startup pitch to potential investors:
The Three Elements To a Successful Pitch
I’m gonna tell you the secret of a successful pitch because I’ve heard thousands of pitches now. There are three elements to it and you have to have all three in order to get an investor to write you a check. It doesn’t determine the outcome of the business but these three are found in every case where an entrepreneur is successful in getting money.
1. Explain the Business in 90 Seconds
You have to explain exactly what the business is in less than 90 seconds. If you can’t do that you’ll never be successful.
2. Make Me Believe You Are the Right Person to Lead It
You have to explain why you’re the right person to execute the business plan. You have a great idea now who’s gonna run the show? Is it you? You’ve got to tell me why? What have you done in the past that makes you particularly good at this opportunity? Did you come out of the industry? Did you work for a competitor? Did you fail before and now know the mistakes you made. A great idea with a great entrepreneur with executional skills are the first two elements.
3. You Have to Know Your Numbers
Now here’s number three and this one is the killer. You have to know your numbers. How big is the market? How fast is it growing? How many competitors? What is your break-even analysis? All of those things you have to know cold.
So Start Practicing…
If you get the first two right and you don’t know your numbers you deserve to burn in hell in perpetuity and I will put you there. Those three together define leadership in business. If you want to be an entrepreneur and you want to be successful you have to do all three. So start practicing…
Shark Tank star and investor Kevin O’Leary says that despite the recent stock volatility the “American core economy is on fire like it was in the 60’s.” O’Leary also believes that getting a deal done with China, as we did with Canada, Mexico, and Europe will make the economy boom even more.
“If we get a deal done with China, Katy bar the door! The upside on the S&P, if that gets worked out, will be extreme. We will have concern about a melt-up!”
Kevin O’Leary talks about how the American core economy is on fire in an interview on CNBC:
Asia is Having a Massive Correction
I think it’s fair to look at large-cap companies and say that they should have some exposure to the volatility to the rest of the world. Over 47 percent of the S&P’s earnings come from overseas markets, notably Asia which is having a massive correction and Europe which is slowing down a little bit. Obviously, the German numbers over the last three months have been slower than people anticipated and it’s started to be reflected in some of their debt.
Volatility Because of Some Concern About China
I still look at that and say, okay, I’m going to own those companies because of their sheer scale and their growth and dividends. Yes, we have more volatility because there is some concern about China and other markets. Our own domestic market, our companies in this country which don’t sell abroad and which have a lot of their input costs at question is one of the reasons small caps are correcting because people are worried about tariffs actually effecting input costs.
The American Core Economy is On Fire Like it was in the 60’s
I have over 30 of them now, almost in every state. The last two quarters I’ve never had anything like this in my life. We’re hitting on every cylinder we’ve got. So look, yes we should be concerned, but the American core economy is on fire. It’s on fire like it was in the 60’s. I’m still bullish on the American economy, my money is still going there because I live it every day. These are not public companies, these are private ones that send me a check every quarter and cash flows are going up. I love them.
If We Get a Deal Done With China, Katy Bar the Door!
The reason we are not having a major correction yet on the China story is that (investors are waiting to see) if we get a deal done as we did with Europe, as we did with Canada, as we did with Mexico. If we get a deal done with China, Katy bar the door! The upside on the S&P, if that gets worked out, will be extreme. We will have concern about a melt-up, which you don’t talk about on a day like today. That’s why the market is waiting to see what happens. So Mnuchin and Kudlow, put your nose to the grindstone, get some work done there, and solve this for us.
