Crypto has Arrived-and right on cue-Altcoins tankIm starting to see more frequent references and inquiries about crypto here. Today will be as good a buying opportunity
For several of the main altcoins including link/ada/vet as i just checked my account and these are all down 15-20 % in last week.
One of the incredibly frustrating things about crypto is how it is almost impossible to own all the different coins you want on a single
Exchange. In general, these exchanges are not customer friendly, but some of the exchanges you would need to access some of the newer defi issues are
Downright anti-social. And then there is the issue where new yorkers are severely limited as to their crypto options. And lastly, the ledger HACK from last week has scared the crap out of a bunch of people.
While Travis attracts many wise investors, lets just say as a whole, we might be (as are most market investors) a bit behind in the crypto curve.
The first step in climbing the curve should be watching the “Cryptopia” doc on prime video. I cant imagine a better way to hep you understand
Crypto and the Blockchain than this great Doc. I already had a decent working knowledge of crypto and this Doc filled in many blanks.
I have made my picks, i have my Hodl bags and i am not gonna let the whales shake me out.
With each passing day, Crypto and the Nasdaq are becoming more entwined, and what i have noticed is that a basic understanding of both leads to greater understanding of both.
This is a discussion topic or guest posting submitted by a Stock Gumshoe reader. The content has not been edited or reviewed by Stock Gumshoe, and any opinions expressed are those of the author alone.
Thank you for the advice and guidance. I have been trying to take plunge myself but never knew where to start and never understood how to differentiate all the different currencies available there and the source where I can get the knowledge on what is happening in that world. Any further advice on this topic will greatly help people like me in this forum.
I am always torn between wanting to help and trying to not overstep my boundaries as I have the highest respect for Travis. He is seeing a lot more interest in crypto and I believe he is going to be giving you more info and analysis in the future. Make sure you check out the documentary I mentioned as it will give u a clearer picture of what you are investing In . I will say this.,
Your first step is to find a good and reliable exchange. Let me know what country and or state and I will help you get set up-
Richard
Thanks Richard. I watched Cryptopia in Amazon this weekend. I think I understood most of it. But came out with the understanding that Bitcoin is the only one that truly follows the protocol written back in 2008. All the rest could be a gamble. I will have to watch it again and pause in between and do more research as I watch it to grasp it better. Litecoin looked promising to me too. But it has gone up so much in the past 30 days that I am getting nervous to enter now.
Hey Richard, thank you – I am in the US (California), looking at Binance.US. Viable?
Also how good is the security among crypto sites? Do I really need to buy an offline wallet and bury it under my Apple tree?
I posted a reply and was either not approved, or deleted. Disappointing to say the least. I did not think this was facebook….
Wendlefly- i like exchsnging thoughts about stocks with you but you are just interjecting too much politicsl stuff in some of your posts.
There is no need for statements about govt contol or whatever else you feel compelled to share here- we are all adults, you are not gonna change Anybodys mind about their core beliefs- and it just kinda makes u seem a little crazy and angry.
These are dark times-dont make them darker here- let the gumshoe be a celebrstion of something we all have in common Not another place for division. You owe me absolutely nothing but Travis Is another story. He is providing you a forum, use it responsibly. Happy to continue to share stock thoughts with you, just please make the effort to dial it back a bit- there are so many other plsces where political comments are Welcome- plz find one
Hi, I don’t think I was making political comments in regards to the subject. Just a observation on my particular view of cryptos and there worth as a investment. No need to get snippy about it. Again, it was just my opinion and people are free to do what they want. However, when I hear about the bullish side of bitcoin and the like, I am compelled to speak up and present a counter view.
I would like to think we can all agree that the issuing of money is the states greatest power. My opinion is that I find it hard to believe this power will be handed over so easily and I state that. I do not think I made any political statements, although I made many on the nature of governments and control, which is a function of all governments. In this context, I think it has a lot to do with bitcoin and private cryptos as a long term assets class going forward.
There is always facebook if you want a echo chamber of views that you agree on, and many other platforms. I tend to embrace platforms that allow a free debate of ideas that let people critically think about things. This does not frighten me.
I did not remove your post but since you were wondering why it was removed, im pretty sure it was in reference to what i was sharing with you. You have the freedom to say whatever u want but obviously that doesnt mean there are no repercussions. My personal view is that i dont say things from behind a computer that i wouldnt say to somebody’s face. As far as your view on crypto, yes, any one of the things you mentioned is a concern. However, i think you are only considering the currency component and not the blockchain component. There are only a few coins that might be considered as alternate forms of currency in the future, however there are a number of altcoins and defi coins that are creating blockchain technology that is going to be disruptive.
These are really not really about the coin, more about the actual business and function they serve. Nor is this theoretical as coins like VET are already functioning in the business world with huge logistics contracts like walmart. U cant really get realer than sam walton lol.
I do have certain reservations about crypto and i am still about 80/20 stock to crypto but i am pretty confident that a few small bets are well worth the risk/reward ratio. Wendle, i dont have an issue with you, but apparently someone else did and i was telling you i had a pretty good idea why.
If it was something else, that got your post deleted , let me know what it is
“Thank you for the advice and guidance. I have been trying to take plunge myself but never knew where to start and never understood “. I think again we can all agree on this. If you don’t understand a investment, “cryptos are made incredibly difficult to understand by design” you will probably lose money. Again not a bug of crypto, but a feature. If you do not have a good understanding of how it works, it will be hacked, stolen, or disappeared from you. Happens all the time.
I guess I may be a old fuddy duddy. I take my bars of silver and hide them. They will not be hacked, phished or anything else. As long as I tell the ones close to me I trust, no one knows what I have. I like that. Anonymity. Every bitcoin you own, they know were it is and its history. Hell for @#its and giggles I opened up a account on coinbase just to see. They wanted a picture of my DL and IDs to buy bitcoin!!!! LMAO WTF so much for anonymity. Even though that doesn’t matter because the first legit transaction you do with it links it to your forever.. In the future bitcoin will make tulip mania look like pikers. The scam to end all scams.
My short bitcoin tale. At its coming out my youngest daughter knew a wiz gamer guy. She learned from him about Bitcoin. She tried very hard to get me to invest. Lacking a thorough understanding I refrained from doing so. Her friend loaded up. Maybe a year later I hit a horse track bet and took payout in Bitcoin. I cashed in most and left a coin. That went up to $7,000. I cashed out and resolved to forget about Bitcoin forever. Added a solar room which I thoroughly enjoy. It is known as the most expensive room in the house because bitcoin has gone to tens of thousands. My daughter’s friend bought himself a mansion outside the city. He paid cash for it with his Bitcoin gains. That one time I should have listened to the youngest.
Thanks you for the video recommendation – I have started to invest in crypto derivatives, GBTC and ETHE. I am willing to invest directly, just waiting for the account “verification”. But I wonder, how does one evaluate the alt coins that are generated? There are a TON of them, and why would I choose one over the other? A friend suggested Ripple about 6 months ago and look where we are today. She is now suggesting that Theta is worth a look, based on a friend who made a ton of money on a different alt coin. (She is a good friend but the referral process feels sketchy/risky.) But how does one evaluate Crypto???
Are there any crypto newsletters that folks have found beneficial? Which ones and why? Thanks in advance!
Hey Travis, how about a primer?
Dreamdoc, I agree that a primer from Travis would be great, at the moment we will let the man enjoy the end of the holidays and than i will reach out to him about a few crypto possibilities .I will say this-stay away from xrp!!
There are some legit altcoins that are very much going to be within mass acceptance within the next 3 months and you dont need to go into the weeds to find them. Crypto has some strange rules right now so the state you live in may or may not allow to have a crypto.com exchange or coinbase exchange account but if you can, get onboard with a crypto.com account and you will be able to access the most essential coins. Ada, vet and Dot are 3 ideal coins but hard for me to tell you to buy them now that im up 500% since april on the first 2 and DOt is up 70% this week. Its still early in cryptoland so i do see these going higher but im a stock guy at heart and would never buy anything at its all time high or even 52 week so thats up to you. My name here is my email if you wanna discuss further. I am not anywhere near Travis’s level of analysis but i will say that having a foot planted firmly in wall st and in crypto, it has given me some good insights
Hi, where do u buy Ada, vet, and doc? They are not available in Coinbase. Which platform do you use? Also, if you are familiar with Coinbase, are there any altcoins there you would suggest? Thanks!!! And thanks for the recommendation on the documentary! I don’t understand this stuff so I’m hoping to learn. Any help is appreciated. 🙂
What I know about bitcoin would fit in a thimble. I’m trying to learn too. A friend of mine also recommended Theta. He said Samsung is going to start using it. I don’t know if that’s true. He recommended it about two months ago. It was at .67 then. I just looked and it’s at $2.03 now. Someone else told me coinbase is a good exchange to use, but I don’t know if Americans can buy Theta on coinbase, or if Theta is the best place to put your bitcoin investment. Will watch the mentioned documentary and look forward to something from Travis.
Theta is currently not available on coinbase in America. Btw- crypto is currently not available in a number of states- Ny is the most restrictive right now. Also, these crypto exchanges are not quite as evolved as they need to be yet in terms of customer service. It’s still the Wild West but overall Crypto.com has been the easiest exchange to use and now has at least 10 of the better altcoins available.
Hi everybody,
I’m gonna try to share some ideas – hopefully it will help!
I will start trying to draw a parallel between a public company and an “altcoin”.
In general the “startup” journey is something like:
– raise a seed investment to bootstrap the company
– build a product and get some traction
– raise necessary capital to grow even more
– consolidate the business
– IPO to raise some more money and to let some investors to exit
Accountability, transparency and investors protection is sort of the requirement for an IPO.
That’s the exact opposite of what happens in the crypto space.
The journey looks like this:
– a company writes down a “white paper” or a “proof of concept”
– very few build a minimum viable product
– they raise money through an ICO/IEO (that is, you get coins instead of shares)
– the company starts building the product, marketing etc.
So the interesting paradox is that in the crypto space you have a weird situations in which a company that
has nothing (no clients, no products…) has a lot of cash instead.
For example, filecoin, a supposed decentralized cloud storage network, raised 257mln$ as “seed investment”.
Now let’s be real. What would you do if you raised 257mln$ before even having an office space? 🙂
Most projects died. In fact, as of today, it’s hard to name a list of projects that succeded in the real world. To my mind comes steemit, bravebrowser and kinda that’s it.
That said, someone might wonder, how come some of those cryptos made 100x or more?
Well, I guess it was due to “mania”. Liquidity was pouring into the market and pretty much every project was netting huge returns for investors. Until liquidity disappeared leaving most people with huge bags.
It’s very hard for me to use the word “investing” in crypto, cause in fact I consider it a pure speculation.
And the speculation usually follows this pattern:
high-cap pump -> defi -> majors -> smaller -> repeat.
So to sum it up: in my opinion when approaching crypto, the focus should be on speculation cause fundamentals are simply not there 🙂
Hope this was useful and if you have any questions please feel free to ask.
This type of analysis should bother me but doesn’t simply because it is the defining reason why most wall st investors will be late to the party and have to pile in after the sweet spot. You are correct that crypto is speculation. But are you implying that stocks are not speculation or that fundamentals are guiding market investors? The number of stocks that have huge market caps but have never made money or are losing money should inform most investors that crypto/blockchain will be a forward looking proposition so I really don’t think it should be evaluated by cryptos currently making a profit in the real world.
To be sure, you definitely did not mention a number of them that are currently thriving such as Vechain and hyperledger. But you are correct that many of these coins will go the way of the dinosaur. Here is the thing- there are a number of crypto’s that have compelling usecase’s and potential to become absolute monsters . Rather than summarily dismiss crypto, I think a better plan of action for most investors would be to take it seriously, find the great projects, and put a small investment down on 5 or so.
If you or anybody else reading this thinks I am a fool by investing in “Monopoly money” lol, I get it. That is precisely what I thought up until early 2020, but learning how the blockchain technology is the driving force-NOT the currency changed my opinion quite a bit. Couple that with the incredibly shrinking value of the us dollar and the fact that cryptocurrency and the global economy go together like peanut butter and jelly and I’m thinking why not give it a go.
I picked 9 coins in April/may and with the exception of xtz, where I am down 15%- I am up 200-500% on the other 8. Yes I am well aware that many of us saw those returns in the stock market this year as well so not bragging. That 200-500% is before there is any real adoption though. This revolution isn’t even here yet, although many Fortune 500 companies are already using blockchain.
I see far too many references to the 2017 bubble. The bubble popped for a few reasons but primarily because we learned that the BTC blockchain was slow and couldn’t scale up efficiently. Now we see BTC is functioning as digital gold, as a storage of wealth, and Ethereum and Cardano are much faster and capable of smart contracts and other coins like Link and Dot building great projects on top of Those platforms.
Seems to me that summarily dismissing crypto isn’t the best idea. Pick 5 coins with a small investment and hope to find The next amazon or google. I seem to recall a lot of people dismissing those 25 years ago.
Hi,
thanks for your reply. I think my analysis wasn’t clear enough and I take the chance to explode a few points.
Blockchain and decentralized-finance is the future of money and financial products. Blockchain technology in general will also have some strong use-case / application especially in those industries were accountability / immutability is key (think: anti-counterfeiting etc).
No doubt about it. Also, no doubt 99% of blockchain projects will be dead.
My comparison with the stock market was trying to go a bit deeper than just “speculation”.
From a company perspective, IPO is a liquidity event to raise capital to be deployed for further growth, talent attraction and all the rest. Including early-investors cashing out so that they can deploy new capital in new companies and provide liquidity in the marketplace.
But the event of liquidity (IPO) happens after a company has proven that is able to create value. Even when it’s loosing money. And is rewarded for that.
Once a company goes public the level of scrutiny is extremely high and there are consequences for misbehaviors. [scams stills exists, of course].
“Valuation” is a function of price discovery. And if the “Market” agrees that a company has a certain value… so be it.
Crypto space works slightly differently. In most projects there is zero accountability, zero transparency and zero execution. Just a “vision” and hype. And IPO valuation are shifted at the level of seed-investment.
So the criteria for “investing” should be, IMHO, completely different than any other asset class. Huge volatility, huge risk, technicals over fundamentals and stuff off this kind.
Those aspects should be taken into consideration when operating.
Down by day, Up by night and on and on it goes. As of late, though, many are bounding back, though some are born to problems, especially with SEC arguments – next in line for spanking: DASH, Monero, Tether and others that are privacy coins. And yes, it’s a bugger to chase down coins on various exchanges, ESPECIALLY when you have to file an 8949 form for both conversions and cash out. While I get a cash out, the issue with conversions is stupid. No cash is going out the door to you. What people will also soon find problematic is using Crypto Credit Cards. Your $6 latte has to be logged on the form – it’s a cash out. While there are softwares that can cull such data from bigger crypto exchanges into a form for you at a price, YOU have to tinker with all your transactions if you bought it on a regular stock exchange. Also, foreign exchanges aren’t required to cough up an accounting for you. Add to that, you need to do due diligence in exploring and understanding how Altcoins work as software on the blockchain. What companies see potential in a software’s use and are throwing millions into it. As to BTC, it is a finite coin. While halving and mining produce more chunks of the same existing coins, the gazillionaires and gazillionaire corps and pumping more into it and buying it up. As to software itself, many coins are seeking to create the same thing. So, what is it that makes a software specifically poised to be integral in the blockchain? Over the past few years over a thousand-plus have already come and gone. This is why it’s volatile. BTC is climbing all the way to another halving. Etherium has about doubled in the past few weeks. Some of the “top experts” picks from a few months ago, such as XRP, are being delisted as of this month. Then again, I’ve stopped listening to these “top experts” as they’re all somehow interconnected pushing their “reports” and five out of six of their top picks that I purchased have tanked measurably. Just because someone’s picked a top few winners over the past 40 years doesn’t make them gurus. They ALL claim to have made the same picks. So what? 5G is where it’s at! Forget 5G! Satellites will kill 5G before it starts! Lithium batteries! Glass batteries! Glass batteries that still use lithium! They’re prattling gives me a headache. Reality. They don’t know what’s going to hit. We’ve spent millions on algorithm software, travelled the world for millions more dollars to get the latest TRUE winners! Well, I can throw rocks and bones on the ground and get the same picks. Do your own research. Especially with Altcoins. Figure out what each strives to accomplish. Go from there. Yes, Blockchain is here to stay. Who’s doing file storage? Contracts? Specific or non specific? One industry or multiple? What coins / software is it to be compatible with? Etc. Good luck.