DISCOVER THE HOTTEST MARKET TREND: BLOCKCHAIN AND ETHEREUM

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1 DISCOVER THE HOTTEST MARKET TREND: BLOCKCHAIN AND ETHEREUM Intro At Investing Haven, we do not suffer from 'prediction addiction'. Our outlook reports do not contain price targets, but rather a forecast of investment trends which allows readers to understand how to position their investments, which asset classes to focus on (and which ones to avoid), which allocation to choose for assets in a diversified portfolio. When forecasting, our guiding principle is to identify ongoing trends, and, depending on the maturity of each trend, assess how relevant they will be in About Us Our experience covers +15 years of global markets. We have focused on stock markets across the globe, commodities and precious metals, and fixed income. Since 2011, we are actively writing for small and large financial media, including: FinancialSense, MarketWatch, Investing.com, Inside Futures, Seeking Alpha, The Morgan Report, Stock House, Market Oracle, Resource Investor, Harvest Exchange, Mountain Vision, Morning Star, MoneyTalks.net, Coinflation, and many other smaller outlets. InvestingHaven.com is our blog on which we publish several updates per day (for free), covering global markets and asset classes, even analysis on specific stocks, with buy and sell signals coming from our proprietary methodology. Follow our work: or our RSS feed.

2 Blockchain: Top Tech Investing Trend Of 2017 And 2018 The top tech investment trend of 2017 and 2018 is blockchain. We consider cryptocurrencies part of the blockchain technology trend, as crypto is running on blockchain platforms. Blockchain, in technical terms, is a digital ledger in which transactions made in a cryptocurrency are recorded chronologically and publicly. The applications (use cases) are numerous: peer to peer electricity exchange, peer to peer money exchange, digital rights management, crowdfunding, and so on. Basically every time there is a transaction between two parties that has to be recorded without an intermediary you can make use of blockchain. The reason why the growth potential of blockchain is huge is because it covers an area that is largely untouched by the internet: intermediaries, notaries, brokers, etc. In short, the middlemen. Really, what is their added value in the digital age? Blockchain tech investing trends in 2017 By far the most interesting tech investment trend in 2017 has been Ethereum. And it is not over yet. The price of Ethereum keeps on rising, and there are good fundamental reasons why InvestingHaven s research team believes that the 2017 price forecast for Ethereum is $550. There is still plenty of upside potential in Ethereum, no matter whether the above chart looks overextended. Based on fundamental data we really see that both usage demand and investment demand keep on rising, and basically have plenty of potential. Ethereum may be hard to invest in, as you need a wallet (not an easy process to find a reliable one and get verified). An even less accessible way to invest in blockchain is in ICOs, Initial Crypto Offerings. Apart

3 from being hard to access it also comes with plenty of risks. So although this is a very hot trend we do not recommend to go all in with ICOs unless you really know what you are doing. Nevertheless the potential returns, long term, can be stellar. Third, there are not many IPO ed blockchain stocks out there, but the ones publicly available have done remarkably well in It should not come as a surprise that InvestingHaven readers have profited, and we get many thank you messages, as we have covered and continue to cover blockchain stocks extensively this year, with a series of spot-on calls which are all available on InvestingHaven.com on the public domain. Blockchain: also the most profitable tech investing trend of 2018? We are truly convinced that blockchain, including cryptocurrencies, will be very hot in More and more startups will mature their technology and company, work towards an IPO, and become successful small-cap and mid-cap technology companies in 2018 and As blockchain will grow in 2018 it is mandatory to identify the stocks and cryptocurrencies that have intrinsic value. With intrinsic value we mean services that are used in real life, that solve real life problems, that have good demand among one or several customer segments, and that show growth in terms of usage. It really pays off to closely follow the blockchain space. A bubble could be in the making but as long as you are invested in companies or cryptocurrencies that have intrinsic value you are good on the (very) long term. We forecast that the price of Ethereum will continue its rise, along with some other cryptocurrencies like Ripple and Zcash (potentially Stellar Lumens). We also forecast that blockchain stocks like BTL Group could do very well. We expect to see new IPOs. When it comes to ICOs we are very cautious, and recommend to only pick one or two in a year to invest in, given the very high risk associated with it, as well as the lack of legal framework (think of property rights). Blockchain will be a very hot tech investing trend, maybe the hottest tech investment trend, of Investment Tips For Cryptocurrencies Investing The price of Bitcoin and the price of Ethereum has exploded in The question is whether there is sufficient upside potential to consider investing in cryptocurrencies. Stated differently, is it (still) worth looking into cryptocurrencies as an investment or is it too late? The key consideration is that Bitcoin is not the only cryptocurrency to invest in. On the other hand, Bitcoin has made cryptocurrencies popular and even more secure. Yes, there were definitely security issues a couple of years ago, but it seems those issues have been resolved. So Bitcoin has helped mature the cryptocurrencies space. InvestingHaven believes that a combination of price analysis and fundamental analysis is the most appropriate way to make a rational investment choice, and to engage in forecasting the price of

4 cryptocurrencies. With that in mind, we also look into the altcoins space in this article in order to find investment opportunities. InvestingHaven s research team has collected 10 investment tips for investing in cryptocurrencies which are useful to investors not very familiar in this space. Investing in cryptocurrencies: tips, insights and upside potential 1. Cryptocurrencies investments are similar to investing to commodities Investing in cryptocurrencies is very similar to commodities investing. The fact of the matter is that commodities have two faces. On the one hand, they are assets that are used in the real world. Base metals, for instance, are used in industry. Softs are used in the food industry. Precious metals are used in the jewelry industry. At the same time, commodities can be invested in, through open market exchanges. Cryptocurrencies are similar. They are used in financial and insurance applications, but investors can also invest in cryptocurrencies. From that perspective, it is mandatory to look at usage and added value that cryptocurrencies create in this world when choosing a specific cryptocurrency to invest in. 2. Usage is growing as evidenced by the collective market cap All cryptocurrencies combined have a market cap of more than $60B meantime. So that includes all cryptocurrencies in existence: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, and hundreds of smaller and unknown ones. To put that into perspective, for investors, here are some reference points: Tesla s market cap is $50B, Boeing Airlines $100B, Coca Cola $180B (rounded figures for April / May 2017). Note how the volume of real world transactions has gone up together with the market cap which indicates that crypto is for real. 3. Most people are unaware about cryptocurrencies, an absolute minority uses them

5 If it is important to look at real world usage as a key criterium when considering investing in cryptocurrencies, then there is great news for investors: you ain t seen nothing yet. According to Statista, who has dedicated a section to cryptocurrencies useful for investing, we see that the number of adults in the U.S. familiar with the most known cryptocurrency (Bitcoin) is only 24 percent. And, by far the most important data point on this graph, the number of Americans that use Bitcoin is 2 percent while the ones thinking of using it in the future is 25 percent. Investors should get excited when realizing this. Not primarily for Bitcoin, but more so for other cryptocurrencies. 4. Usage is the key criterium for investors As said in the intro, analyzing fundamental data is the key element in our methodology to identify a decent investment opportunity. So supply and demand data, based on usage in the real world, is what investors should be focused on. That is also what we used as a method in our Bitcoin Price Forecast For 2017 and our Ethereum Price Forecast For Note that our Bitcoin forecast got filled meantime, as the price of Bitcoin went over $2000, a forecast we made more two months ago.

6 As an example, when it comes to Ethereum, we have included the chart which features the number of its transactions, see below. This is proof that Ethereum is being used in the real world. Moreover, the number of Bitcoins in circulation is another proof of cryptocurrency usage, as well as trade volume. Note also how Ripple, a cryptocurrency which is meant to facilitate payments between financial institutions, and, in doing so, pushes transaction costs down meaningfully, has a great chart highlighting the strong usage of some large accounts along with the long tail of users: Ripple usage statistics. 5. Where are we in the market cycle? Given the above data points, we consider that we are nowhere near any point close to euphoria according to the traditional market cycle. It is maybe not very useful to consider Bitcoin as an investment opportunity, though prices can go much higher from here. However, there are many other cryptocurrencies which are only now starting to be considered by businesses, governments, and society across the globe. With that in mind, we believe we are only in the optimism stage in the market cycle.

7 Note that this market cycle can be considered by individual cryptocurrency as well (we considered all cryptocurrencies combined when we stated that we are in the optimism stage). Bitcoin certainly has gone through this cycle, reaching euphoria in January of Altcoins are similar to the dotcom hype, 80% will not survive the storm Pareto is one of the few universal principles applicable in all areas of life, including in the investment world. We see a dotcom type hype arising and, presumably, 80% of cryptocurrencies will not survive the storm. We saw something similar in the dotcom hype. That is simply because, during a hype, users and investors do not focus sufficiently on the real added value that is created. It is imperative for investors, when choosing cryptocurrencies to invest in, that they acknowledge the added value that is created, from a business and society perspective. 7. A cryptocurrency MUST solve a problem in life Just buying cryptocurrencies hoping that they will deliver an investment return does not make sense at all. The sweet spot for every investor is the ability to solve a problem: the bigger the problem that gets solved, the higher the potential value. One of the sweet spots that cryptocurrencies can enable as a problem solver is to provide access to money and basic banking functions like wiring and paying. A fact that is unknown is that a huge amount of people globally do NOT have access to to these traditional banking services. We consider that Stellar Lumens, symbol XLM, is such an enabler. At the moment of writing, Stellar Lumens trades at $0.05. Read on Fortune.com why Stellar has a disruptive potential, especially in the underdeveloped part of the world, and is worth a cryptocurrency investment.

8 8. Create your investment portfolio with a limited number of cryptocurrencies As with any other investment, investors should create their own portfolio and work on it actively. Also, they should work on it for the very long term. Creating a portfolio with some cryptocurrencies is the way to go. Choosing them selectively is imperative. Only invest in things you understand and keep your emotions under control are principles that should always be applied, in every investment portfolio. 9. Crypto to money Do not forget that your cryptocurrencies can be exchanged for traditional money. The market is in the process of enabling all exchanges: all traditional currencies will be exchangeable with all cryptocurrencies, sooner rather than later. So the lock-in risk which was present a while back will not be a risk going forward. Stated differently, your portfolio with cryptocurrencies is just another way to store cash, or exchange crypto for cash (money), over time as market conditions change. 10. Read the right sources Last but not least, as it goes with every hype, everyone and his uncle can become a guru during a hype. Be very sceptical when following people and selecting sources to read. The blogosphere has only a handful of bloggers who are worth following, say maximum 20 percent. An Ethereum Price Forecast Of $4000 by 2020 based on the current trend It may sound too good to be true but InvestingHaven s research team calculates a long term ethereum price forecast of $4000, by Earlier this week we wrote how the price of Ethereum engaged in a mega breakout right after it crossed the triple top price level of $400. That was for us the trigger which confirmed our long-standing price targets: target of 550 USD stil in 2017 and our longer term target of 1000 USD (before 2020). InvestingHaven's research team noticed something very interesting after this week's breakout: a trend channel that is developing on Ethereum's price chart, and it resulted in a series of Ethereum price predictions. Trend channels are the most powerful way to forecast future price direction on a chart. This is not technical analysis, it is chart analysis. Could look similar, but it IS different and sounds different as well. Chart analysis is as relevant as it can be in the cryptocurrencies space. Many think that cryptocurrencies behave differently. We would say that the difference between cryptocurrencies and traditional investments is the rate of change (in other words, how fast they behave), certainly not HOW they behave. Ethereum price predictions based on old-school chart analysis The chart below is the one which shows the trend we notice. Given that Ethereum is moving outside of its 150 to 400 USD range, with the breakout above 400 USD, we see that a rising channel is at play.

9 That trend channel gives a short term price target of 600 USD. If, and that is a big IF, this new trend channel continues in the coming months and years, we can expect a series of Ethereum price predictions based on the rate of change of 47% over the last 6 months. Within that trend channel Ethereum will trade at 1250 in 12 months from now. And this is where the power of compound gains kicks in. As explained in great detail in our master work Practical Guide To Ride The Mega Bull Market in Blockchain and Cryptocurrencies which features 20 very specific investment tips (available for just USD) we aim for a compound effect on the top altcoins. With that effect kicking in we see the following Ethereum price predictions in the coming years: 2710 USD by the end of USD in 2020 That 2020 prediction would be a fourfold increase against our initial prediction of 1000 USD. Now all this assumes that the current trend channel we noticed is in place AND remains in place. Investors cannot exclude an acceleration nor a deceleration of this channel, so the outcome can be even more bullish or simply will never get there because the uptrend stops (not very likely, but never say never).

10 Follow our work to get daily market updates InvestingHaven.com is our blog on which we publish several updates per day (for free), covering global markets and asset classes. We will monitor global markets, and trends in specific markets and asset classes, throughout the year, in great detail. We will also continue to refer to this outlook report, so readers are adviced to connect with us on Twitter, our RSS feed, or through the free subscription service, to receive our daily updates. Connect with us on or our RSS feed.