That's the big question on everyone's lips. Because on the face of it, things look decidedly muted for us. I'm talking about the divisive upcoming hardfork as well as our spot on coinmarketcap plummeting like there's no tomorrow. However, I still do hold a lot of faith that we will get that inevitable pump in price kicking in some time soon. And it's not based off blind chants of "STEEM is gonna moon!!!". No, here's the real reason why...
I'm quite sure it won't be because of our developmental improvements, although it's always nice to have that in place as a reason why people should pay attention to the STEEM token in the future. No, why we should eventually move up in value is simple. The entire crypto space is one big speculative bubble. And it can be divided into two distinct parts. Bitcoin and the alts. Even though some alts managed to pump during the recent Bitcoin rally we experienced, make no mistake. The altcoin market is a single entity unto itself. Bitcoin goes up, the alts usually tank. Bitcoin down and vice versa. We're but a small part of what makes up the completed picture called the alts. And with that said, altcoin season is definitely on it's way.
I remember in 2017 when Bitcoin first went on a rampage and the vast majority of alts remained stagnant. All that changed soon after though, as we all witnessed the surge most people were waiting for. And it was across the board. Anything and everything was pumping in price, regardless of use-case, coin attributes or development agendas. It was a free-for-all and I absolutely expect this is happen again, until the masses reach a point where they are able to distinguish one digital token from another, based on their own personal criteria. And we are far, far away from that world, right now.
It's easy to get swept up in the euphoria of the crypto markets if you're in it for long enough. So much so, that it can even breed an air of complacency within us. I mean, for myself anyways, I simply can't do any more explanations to people I know, on why the crypto markets might benefit them. Most have no interest in them anyway, which I'm sure will change once Libra hits next year. If you're in the crypto markets for enough time, there comes a point where you imagine this whole space to be much bigger than it really is. People find their coin and consider others in the space as rivals. We defend our digital discovery to the end and lambaste anyone who says otherwise. When really speaking, we are all just one and the same. A purely speculative gamble in a tiny economic arena, with the intention to convince an unsuspecting world that we actually matter. For now, most people out there haven't a clue about Bitcoin or how to buy and store them, leave alone making informed comparisons to it's numerous counterparts.
But maybe this is a good thing for those of us looking to make a quick buck. When the big investors throw bucketfuls of cash into these markets and public sentiment gradually turns around again, it won't just be Bitcoin leading the charge. Anything in the top 100 will have an opportunity to scream into the heavens as a sudden influx of capital will balance out the rest of the crypto space. Sure, a lot of it will be "dumb money", but the overall effect will be the same as in 2017. If the price increases are substantial enough in regard in Bitcoin, you can bet all the other big money will want to venture into the next possible crypto asset superstar. In fact, a lack of market knowledge may actually turn out to be a good thing for most digital tokens during the next altcoin run. It will all be speculative to an investor. Red or black, odds or evens. Because a spread out, evenly distributed portfolio, in theory, holds much less risk. That's why I think STEEM, if for no other reason, will literally be swept up with everything else. So STEEM back over a dollar some day? Why the hell not, I say?
Some day, the speculative factor should take a backseat to more realistic and tangible ones. Like what can it actually provide in terms of value or what are it's intrinsic qualities separating it out from the rest? But we're a long way off from there. Until development and real world use-case means something that any lay-person can relate to and fully comprehend, it's all about placing your bets and cashing out at the right time. All the best and good luck, my Steemian peepz!
