No Bull? Bitcoin Recognized as ‘Apex Predator of Money’ With Shark Statue

New York’s Charging Bull has boasted sharp horns near Wall Street for decades, but across the country, Bitcoin got its very own mascot displaying hundreds of razor-sharp teeth last week.

At the Bitcoin Alpha “unconference” in Santa Monica, California, the entrepreneurs unveiled an artwork that recognizes the spirit of bitcoin with a large white dog hanging in a glass case.

The sculpture glowed under orange lights during the two-day gathering, serving as a backdrop for dozens of private discussions. According to the museum-style poster, “The Apex Predator of Money” is named “Bitcoinius Maximus”.

Bitcoin Alpha organizers plan to make Bitcoinius the centerpiece of a pop-up installation called “Living with Bitcoin,” Ben Sigman said Decipher. The Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, with its many empty storefronts, would be a natural place, he added.

Sharks are one of the oldest species on Earth, and their multimillion-year history shows how Bitcoin could outlive assets like money and gold, Sigman said. Moreover, some sharks have to constantly swim to breathe, reflecting the 24/7 uptime of Bitcoin.

“They are cold, calculating, patient predators,” added Sigman.

Throughout Bitcoin’s history, enthusiasts of the asset have sought parallels in the natural world. For example, in 2013, crypto entrepreneur Roger Ver—known as “Bitcoin Jesus”—helped popularize it honey bear as bitcoin’s spirit animal on billboards in Santa Clara, California.

Sigman said that he and Fred Krueger—who has a Ph.D. in mathematics and is a former prop trader with a penchant for Bitcoin ETFs—suggest sharks as a symbol for Bitcoin, rather than declaring them as one. “Bitcoin doesn’t work like that,” Sigman explained.

Originally, Sigman and Krueger were interested in a sculpture of a shark’s dorsal fin, in relation to the cover of their latest book, “Bitcoin One Million”. However, the final piece is more like Damien Hirst’s “The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Who Lives.” That artwork depicts an actual tiger shark suspended in a formaldehyde solution.

Although great white sharks can weigh over 5,000 pounds, Bitcoinius weighs a tenth as much, including a nine-foot-by-four-foot enclosure. From concept to storefront, Sigman said the process took less than a few months.

Earlier this year, some Bitcoiners greeted the discovery of an orange nurse shark off the coast of Costa Rica as an “auspicious sign”. Scientists said the shark had a combination of skin diseases that were incredibly rare, per National Geographic.

In 2022, a 3,000-pound statue was unveiled at a bitcoin conference in Miami. Modeled after New York’s Charging Bull, the statue leans towards a cyberpunk aesthetic while sporting laser eyes. At the time, it symbolized the growing influence of the area as a financial and technological center.

Sigman said sharks are a fitting symbol for Bitcoin compared to any land animal because the asset has the potential to capture more than traditional finance, he said.

“Crypto is much bigger than Wall Street,” he said. “It really is an ocean.”