With the Christmas holidays over, might we expect new money to pour into the markets? The past week saw a few dips in the market, with bitcoin falling to 11,000 and 13,000 on two separate occasions. The price has rebounded now back to over 16,000.
Crypto as a store of value?
One big vision for crypto was it's use as an alternative currency. It promoted fast and global transactions, as well as the security of cryptography. However, as we draw to the end of 2017, we've found that some cryptos, like bitcoin, have taken on a role as a store of value rather than as a currency. The popularity and high demand of bitcoin has caused transaction fees to sky rocket. As a result, using it for daily spending is very cost inefficient as the transaction fees may very well take up a large percentage of the actual purchase.
Nonetheless, it still works very well as a store of value. It's accessible all around the world, as long as you have an internet connection you can send and receive it. In nations suffering from hyperinflation, like Venezuela, bitcoin can help people retain some of the value of their currency. It sort of functions like a form of digital gold.
Bitcoin God - more forks?
Forks look like they are here to stay. This year saw the coming of Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, Bitcoin Diamond just to name a few. And they all had various levels of success.
Another one on the horizon is Bitcoin God, set to fork at block height 501225. Created by chinese developers, they say they will offer POS mining, large block sizes, smart contracts, and zero-knowledge proof. Only time will tell whether they can deliver on these promises, but all this forking business shows now signs of slowing down.
Segwit2x
Its "officially" Back. Well not really official because the original Segwit2X has been cancelled. But savvy developers want to use that name and create a new coin that has double the blocksize of bitcoin (at this point.. is double really enough?). Exchanges are hungrily accepting this new coin because they an take some extra commission!
The content here is not financial advice. The above references an opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.