First, this is not financial advice. I am just a dude on the internet who is airing his personal opinions. Second, I assume you are going to hold your coins for atleast a year if not for 5 years or more. If you want to swing trade or day trade I have zero thoughts to offer.
Good News
2018 is a bear market for cryptocurrency. It's bad news because a lot of people aren't making money right now but it's good news if you want to get into this market. Everything is on sale!
Know What Kind of Cryptos Exist
- There are payment cryptos like Bitcoin.
- There are smart contract networks like Ethereum.
- There are privacy coins like Monero.
- There are Decentralized Apps and utility tokens like BAT.
Its essential that you do your research and know all of the categories.
Bitcoin is Still King
Bitcoin runs the crypto market. If Bitcoin goes up everything goes up. If Bitcoin goes down everything goes down. Because of this I think any good portfolio will have Bitcoin. How much? That's for you to research.
ICO's
There is a lot of confusion over ICO's. ICO stands for initial coin offering and can be a startup project as massive as Cardano (a crypto on the top ten of ) or as small as Coinjanitor a wonderful little project that most likely you have not heard of. Most cryptos started out as ICOs; just look at Ethereum.
However, there have also been scams and projects that just couldn't make it. The other thing to keep in mind is the fact that most of these ICO's are overpriced. There is a project I love called Bethereum. They have a great team, a working product and a good idea. However, they are selling each Bethereum at 3 cents and have created 1 billion of them! This means there project is valued at 30 million dollars! I am not convinced they are worth that much even though they really are a wonderful project. However, they don't sell themselves as an investment opportunity. They are a fun utility token that allows you to bet on your favorite sports teams.
Utility Tokens
This leads to my final note about ICO's; most of them are utility tokens. If you are looking at a utility token ask yourself one question: will I use it? With Bethereum I will probably use it twice a year; the Superbowl and the Kentucky Derby. How much would I purchase? Maybe 25 dollars worth; that's all I ever bet. Bethereum is not an investment; it's just a fun way to bet. If it happens to go on a bull run I got lucky.
Get Vested
Some cryptocurrencies you want to buy a certain number of them if you really want to benefit. For instance, with EOS you really want to hold 100 of them. Why? Because anyone who holds 100 token automatically gets airdrops from the various EOS dapps but if you have less you don't get anything. Of course not all cryptos are like this but some are so you need to do your research.
A Bitcoin Advantage
Bitcoin is a hedge against failing fiat currencies and failed governments. There are many currencies around the world that are failing. Just look at the Turkish Lira; I guarantee anyone from Turkey who bought into Bitcoin last year is thanking his luck stars. Many different countries in Africa also have similar economies with some immediately turning their fiat into Bitcoin as quickly as possible.
I must also point out that if you forsee government persecution or civil war crypto is a wonderful way to safe guard wealth. Turn your flat into crypto and you can leave the country with nothing more than a backpack and your wealth travels with you. A bank that is ran by a ruthless dictator may steal your money but it won't be easy for them to get your Bitcoin. I have heard the government in South Africa is attempting to confiscate white farmer's land and take their wealth. I highly suggest these farmers sell everything they can, turn it into Bitcoin and make a paper wallet. Hide that paper wallet in your shoe when you leave the country. Atleast, you will have a good chance to start over again.
Final Thoughts
I personally, think everyone should own some cryptocurrencies; I believe they are the future of money. I also think you are insane if you put your life savings into it. So keep your stocks, bonds, and real estate. Just add crypto into your investment portfolio the same way you might buy some precious metals to round out your investments. Too much and you take on too much risk none at all and you are losing out on a wonderful opportunity.