Ray Dalio, founder and co-CIO of Bridgewater Associates, said Wednesday that government authorities will eliminate cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC-USD) if they become rivals to national currencies. "At the end of the day, if it's really successful, they'll kill it," he told CNBC. Still, Dalio backed crypto as a viable asset class despite the regulatory risk. "That doesn't mean it doesn't have a place, a value," he said. The billionaire investor underlined the fact that cryptocurrencies lack intrinsic value, meaning that people should remain diversified to protect against volatility in crypto. Speaking on the larger market, Dalio echoed earlier comments he had made, declaring "cash is still trash." He said rising inflation meant that people needed to invest their money in order to protect the value of their holdings. The Bridgewater founder advised investors to remain diversified but warned that most people don't have a wide enough variety in their portfolios.