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Every decade, we usually see a major technology that comes along and disrupts the world completely. In the 70s, Bill Gates and Paul Allen started Microsoft to offer operating systems to then computers. In the 80s, software companies like Intuit and Adobe were started. In the 90s, companies like Amazon and Expedia were started while in the 2000s, companies like Facebook and Twitter were started. Each of these companies has disrupted entire industries.
Investors who invested in these companies early on have made huge returns on their investment. For example, a person who invested $1,000 during Facebook’s IPO has a stake worth more than $4,600.
Where to trade cryptos?
There are many options to trade cryptocurrencies online and these platforms are often added new options to for traders as the knowledge of this new cryptocurrency increases and the technology matures and morphs.
Blockchain technology
The latest big trend is blockchain. This is a technology invented in 2008 by a mysterious person known as Satoshi Nakamoto. Since then, the world has seen significant growth in the blockchain technology, led by cryptocurrencies.
Statistics show that there are more than 1300 cryptocurrencies in the world. They have a combined market capitalization of more than $500 billion.
These days, everyone from the richest elites to the poorest of the poor are talking about bitcoin. They have all been surprised by the rise of a mysterious product that rose by more than 1000%.
The main reason why everyone is talking about cryptocurrencies is that they believe this is the next big thing since the dot com boom.
Following the 2008/9 crisis, the confidence on the central bankers and other regulators dipped. People felt betrayed by the regulators. Their actions – or ‘mis-actions’ – led to the biggest financial crisis since the 1930s.
In addition, people believe that the government and its agencies have become so powerful by implementing stringent regulations. These regulations have made it difficult for people to transact and even raise money for their businesses.
Therefore, traders believe that cryptocurrencies have a potential to become the next big thing in finance. They believe that the technology could replace the Central Banks with a decentralized system. They also believe that the technology can significantly reduce the costs and time for doing business. Finally, they believe that blockchain technology will change the world the way the internet did.
While many outspoken economists like Nouriel Roubini and regulators like Janet Yellen have questioned the viability of cryptocurrencies, there is a consensus that the underlying blockchain technology could be a game changer. Already, large companies like IBM and Maersk have invested billions of dollars to research how the blockchain technology will apply to global trade.
At the same time, remittance companies like MoneyGram and Western Union have partnered with a cryptocurrency called Ripple to simplify the remittance process. By applying this technology, they are able to reduce the time and costs for funds transfer.
While cryptocurrencies are hot, significant risks remain. Many people have questioned the idea behind these currencies. For example, as mentioned above, bitcoin was supposed to make shopping easy, faster, cheaper, and untraceable by regulators. However, in the real world, this is not the case. Very few major sellers accept bitcoin because of its volatility.
Doing transactions with bitcoin is not cheap as well. In fact, research shows that the transaction costs for bitcoin are often more expensive than those of fiat currencies. Finally, regulators in all countries are crafting regulations to govern cryptocurrencies. Certainly, the ability to track transactions will be in those regulations, which will remove the underlying logic of the technology.
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