A bit of a click-bait title. I didn't really trick him.
My BIL is planning to take out a loan with a deferred repayment of 10 years (www.unlock.com if you're curious) to pay off some high-interest business debt. I heard through the family grapevine that after paying off the debt, he'd planned to put the rest into a Certificate of Deposit.
I called him up today with a proposition: instead of putting that money into a CD, he should put it into Bitcoin instead - but only if he planned to do the CDs long-term. I also told him that if he did that and it didn't match at least the interest rate of the CDs (+0.5%) at the end of the 10 years, I would pay back the difference. He said it sounded like an offer he couldn't refuse and would get back to me when all of the paperwork is done and he knows approximately how much cash he'd have leftover after paying off the debt.
The only reason I would even consider this is because I'm highly confident Bitcoin will grow more than ~5-6% per year and even if by some miniscule chance it didn't grow at that rate, I can afford to cover the cost.
I am also now considering adding in a few extra stipulations so we (I) don't have to wait the full 10 years:
- if at any point Bitcoin's price causes the CD interest rate to be met AND there is no capital gains tax on Bitcoin OR it is legal tender, then my obligation has been met whether or not he cashes out (because he had the option)
- if at any point Bitcoin's price causes the CD interest rate to be met + applicable income taxes in the event of a cash-out, then my obligation has been met
Consider this for your own friends/family. Even easier if they do it with a small amount of money.