I think it’s safe to say 2017 has been the year of cryptocurrencies. As we head toward 2018, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin have been showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
At the start of 2017, all cryptocurrencies combined had a market cap of $17.7 billion. Fast-forward to December 12th, and they are all worth $494 billion. That’s a return of about 2,700%! And it occurred in less than a year.
You’d be lucky to see a fraction of that during your lifetime. It’s an opportunity that doesn’t come around often.
Bitcoin has been the leader in the upward trend for cryptocurrencies. As you probably guessed, it’s one of the most popular cryptocurrencies out there. It comprises 59% of the aggregate $494 billion market cap.
As I’m writing this, Bitcoin is at an astounding $18,620. Analysts who predicted Bitcoin’s growth are expecting it to grow even bigger.
Ronnie Moas, the founder of Standpoint Research, predicted in July that Bitcoin would increase 500%, and now he’s predicting it’ll rise another 500%.
He said:
The end-game on bitcoin is that it will hit $300,000 to $400,000 in my opinion, and it will be the most valuable currency in the world.
Moas went on further to say:
I don’t know how much gold there is in the ground, but I know how much Bitcoin there is, and in two years there will be 300 million people in the world trying to get their hands on a few million bitcoin. This mind-boggling supply and demand imbalance is what is going to drive the price higher.
At the moment, it’s hard to deny Bitcoin’s growing demand. It’s even harder to deny how that demand will take the price of Bitcoin even higher.
The desire to be a part of this life-changing opportunity has everyone fighting to secure some kind of position with Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies.
If you don’t believe me, just take a look at Coinbase. If you’re not familiar with Coinbase, it’s a cryptocurrency brokerage, and its app recently surpassed YouTube as the #1 app on Apple’s App Store. It’s been adding around 100,000 new users per day — obviously a clear indicator of the demand for cryptocurrencies.
As more investors and people become aware of Bitcoin and the investing opportunities that lay ahead, they begin to realize the potential of other cryptocurrencies.
They get pulled in by the amazing returns Bitcoin is experiencing but then are introduced to other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and Litecoin — the other two cryptocurrencies Coinbase supports and the ones investors will have easy access to.
It’s kind of like a trickle-down effect. First, potential investors get interested in Bitcoin. Then they go to Coinbase to set up their account to begin trading. Then they realize it’ll be hard to earn the same type of returns that have already happened with Bitcoin.
Sure, Bitcoin is expected to keep soaring, but it’s already priced at $18,620. For the everyday investor, it’s already become unapproachable, which leads these investors to other cryptocurrencies that are poised to see similar success.
The Rise of Other Cryptocurrencies
The rapid growth of Bitcoin is directly affecting altcoin markets. The increasing volume of Bitcoin trading has pushed investors toward altcoins like Litecoin.
Litecoin has been compared to Bitcoin. Earlier this year, Charles Bovaird at CoinDesk called Bitcoin and Litecoin “birds of a feather,” insinuating that there is a direct relationship between positive growth in Bitcoin and Litecoin.
Currently Litecoin is the world’s fifth-largest cryptocurrency. Last week it reached a new high of $341.80 but then dipped to $251.22 on December 15th. However, this Monday it picked back up and was trading above $300.
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Litecoin is picking up. It’s getting some recognition that could definitely be mirroring Bitcoin in its earlier days.
Over the weekend, I was having drinks with some friends, and to no surprise I heard one of them start talking about Bitcoin. That led into a conversation about Litecoin…
This year, my friend Allen just started investing in hopes of making some extra money.
He was telling me that he’s been following cryptocurrencies for some time, but it wasn’t until this past week that he finally decided to take the plunge into the crypto world. He had some extra money from a recent DJ gig, so he thought, what did he really have to lose?
He took that extra money and put it into Litecoin. It still somewhat surprises me when I have these conversations with my friends or even strangers, but it really shouldn’t.
What Could Be the Next Bitcoin?
It’s clear that people want to dip their toes in the crypto water. No one wants to miss out on an opportunity that could bring them money they didn’t have before.
People are realizing that Bitcoin was only at $1,000 at the beginning of the year, and now here it is at $18,620 in less than a year. Those are the types of returns everyday or even professional investors dream of. Anyone would be lucky to experience that in their lifetime.
Litecoin has been experiencing a huge rise of its own. Litecoin’s market cap is more than the entire market cap of all cryptocurrencies combined in the beginning of the year.
You might be getting tired of hearing about Bitcoin right now, but going into 2018 we could be hearing a lot more about other cryptocurrencies that are very well poised to see similar success to Bitcoin’s.
Bitcoin laid the groundwork. It showed that it was possible for everyday investors to have their own success stories.
Prepare yourself for the upcoming year of cryptocurrencies by reading my colleague Alex Koyfman’s detailed report on two cryptocurrencies that have the potential to be bigger than Bitcoin.
Until next time,
Monica Savaglia
Wealth Daily
