Adam Back Calls Bitcoin the 'Hurdle Rate' After Anthropic's Junk Rating
Blockstream's Adam Back framed bitcoin as the benchmark to beat after Anthropic drew a junk credit rating, widening a debate over borrowing costs and 60/40 portfolios.
A junk-grade credit rating for AI developer Anthropic has become the starting point for a broader argument about bitcoin, after Blockstream chief executive Adam Back described the asset as the "hurdle rate" — the benchmark other holdings must clear to justify capital.
The remarks, reported by BeInCrypto, tie a single company's cost of borrowing to much larger questions about Treasury yields and the traditional 60/40 stock-and-bond portfolio.
From a rating to a benchmark
A speculative-grade label generally signals that a borrower is expected to pay more to raise debt than investment-grade issuers. Back's framing extends that logic outward: if corporate and government debt carry a given yield, any allocation to bitcoin should be judged against that return rather than in isolation.
- Anthropic carries a junk credit rating, according to the report
- Adam Back described bitcoin as the "hurdle rate" in response
- The discussion extends to Treasury yields and 60/40 portfolio construction
The comparison is a common one in bitcoin circles, where holders often argue the asset should be measured against bonds and balanced portfolios rather than against other cryptocurrencies. It is a framing argument rather than a settled measure: bitcoin's volatility and lack of cash flows make direct yield comparisons contested, and no single hurdle rate is accepted across the industry. The Anthropic rating simply gave the debate a fresh reference point.