I was going to go with “Bitcoin is futurist nonsense fit only for speculation and pipe dreams” but sure.
I don’t totally disagree, but I need to know for a study I’m collaborating on at work, so…
So Bitcoin has risen from under $1000 in January to $10,000 overnight last night. A small correction happened today as lots of people took profits, but every indication is that BTC will continue to increase at a steady rate for the foreseeable future, especially now that Wall Street has taken notice and CryptoCurrency funds are popping up at all major investment firms. Cautious predictions call for $12,000 by the end of the year, and some of the more bullish folks are touting $20K and even $40K in 2018.
So my question is…if I want to test the BTC waters now, with say a modest $1000 investment, what is the best way to do this? Is Coinbase generally considered legit and secure? What sort of buy-in and sell-off fees can I expect? Is anyone on QT3 actively investing in CryptoCurrency?
Just to be clear, when you say investment, you mean purchasing some bitcoin, and not a mining rig, correct? Because I don’t think you’d easily break even, esp. with Bitcoin, at that pricepoint, in any kind of reasonable timespan.
Correct, no mining, this is all about buying BitCoin, hopefully safely, and holding on to it for a few months as a small investment opportunity. I mean hell, if I can make $400 off a $1000 investment then I’ve pretty much let the miners pay for my next overpriced video card for me. =)
Don’t bubbles usually pop when newbies ask about dipping their toes in?
But the world is so crazy, who knows how long it will go on.
I think the smart money is going to be to work on hacking the Bitcoin wallets owned by neophytes. They’re still tied to individual, non-distributed files, right? I’m sure they’re working on securing them, but with a new space like this, there are going to be gaps as people who do’nt fully understand the tech are getting involved.
Even if you can’t steal them, being able to remotely destroy a hedge fund’s bitcoin wallet would be quite a coup.
Funny seeing you here, Mr. Robot.
Is that a general comment, or was that a specific plot point in Mr. Robot? I haven’t watched it.
You should watch it! It’s almost ludicrously good.
A major plot-point of the show–revealed by the end of the first episode!–is a plan to disrupt an unsavory mega-conglomerate by destroying the digital records of its banking subsidiaries, freeing the populace from billions of dollars in debt in one fell swoop
I held some bitcoin when it was $400. It dipped awhile which made me sad, and then it came back up so I sold it all to break even. I also said when it hit $1000 that “this is amazing, but it would be so stupid to buy bitcoin now, so peak”. I feel very sad at recent developments.
Personally I think it (and blockchain based crypto in general, but especially BTC and ETH) is a massive bubble - pretty much every classic indicator is there - but equally I wouldn’t be surprised if it increased by another order of magnitude before collapsing. So, as long as you’re treating it as a speculative punt, and are aware of the risk of it being hacked, stolen or otherwise inaccessible, go for it. Also, re: Coinbase specifically, be aware that the IRS is aggressively investigating users for tax evasion and has just got a court order for the info of all large volume users. So read up on the tax implications and pay what you owe.
Yeah, that’s pretty much where I am too. The volatility, but mostly the “inaccessible wallet” situation is what scared me off of the idea of holding a position, personally.
Blockchain itself has use. At least I think it might. Anything that requires a platform with inbuilt and verified trust in transactions could be a target for blockchain tech. Even my wife, as lawyer at a global mining resources company, has attended conferences on potential blockchain use cases in contracts law.
Cryto currency though, no idea. I am at a loss as to what is underpinning the ‘value’ of Bitcoin, other than a rampant speculative market hinged on its capped availability and some perception that it will be the ‘gold’ standard of crypto currencies - a safe harbour for crypto investors. Ether, at least I can understand - people are writing contracts (apps) that use Etherium blockchain as the platform for a given service, so it’s value goes beyond the currency itself.
Man, I cashed out about 10k of vested shares and put them into shares of a local business in March 2015 that have done sweet fuck all. Had I put that in to BTC, it’d be over 300k. That said, no way the Financial Controller of the household would have approved a BTC investment back then.
Also work with a guy that has retired and is embarking on a multiyear trip around Australia with his family, courtesy of making a small fortune on BTC.
Oh well.
This. I’ve been involved with cryptos for several years now (I’ve been living of the profits for a while now), yet it’s only in recent months that I’ve seen regular joe begin trading. It’s absolutely a bubble, primarily fueled by the Chinese who want to park their money somewhere. But as stated above, there’s no telling when the bubble is going to pop or inflate some more in the coming weeks.
Bitcoin is the most ridiculous tulip hysteria I’ve ever seen. A currency can’t go through that much deflation so quickly, it makes it useless as a currency. It’s not backed by anyone, the valuation is purely speculative. There is no faith and full credit, there is no regulation against manipulation, it’s smoke and mirrors. I would never in a million years accept Bitcoin as a form of payment. It’s like being paid with ice cream.
Tulips all over again.
Bitcoin’s value as an exchange medium is near zero-- the volatility and cost of transactions are ridiculous. And this will never get better. The blockchain is controlled by a number of Chinese mining companies that are probably controlled by the Chinese military. As an investment instrument it is totally in a “greater fool” place.
MSN: Bitcoin ‘Ought to Be Outlawed,’ Says Joseph Stiglitz http://a.msn.com/00/en-gb/BBFUrS5?ocid=se
Ah, here’s a summary - the MSN video won’t embed though:
Stiglitz basically says that the only value Bitcoin offers is circumvention of currency laws.
So far there appear to be two camps about this:
- Bitcoin is the future and anyone who doubts it is too old or just doesn’t get it.
- Bitcoin is a bubble and lots of people are going to get hurt.
Not that that’s a totally insignificant value. Stripping some power from the Fed and the Chinese alike isn’t a bad idea IMO
Bitcoin isn’t stripping power from the Chinese. At the moment, the Chinese are by far the biggest miners in the world. I mean, I guess it will strip power from them when the bubble bursts.