I was prompted to write this article after seeing several of my friends fall for hype from the so-called “crypto experts.” I saw my friends sharing articles with bold headlines saying that a coin is dominating the market therefore it could potentially be the winning coin. They presented graphs showing the coin going up in value. I thought it was strange that they were sharing all this information about the coin’s market value but they weren’t sharing anything about the coin’s backbone. So I did a little digging. What I found was that the coin isn’t even a coin, it’s a token. There is no development community behind it because tokens aren’t mined, they’re created. On top of that, the company that created the token owns 61% of it, so the token isn’t equitably distributed.
I was surprised that my friends weren’t aware of these issues before jumping onboard. I started to look around and I noticed that there is a lot of emotion-based investing in the crypto world. Much of it is fueled by the sensational headlines and graph-filled articles presented by the so-called crypto experts. So I decided to write this article to help people be aware of the hype-filled crypto market.
Being in the blockchain space, I come across a lot of people who are into crypto (since crypto is an application of blockchain). These people either invest in crypto, launch crypto ICO’s, have crypto based businesses, and/or consult others on crypto. Regardless of what they do, they often position themselves as crypto experts. And they can. Why? Because the space is so new and so many people don’t understand crypto that with a little bit of knowledge someone can appear as an expert. Be cautious though. Many of these “experts” have ulterior motives. They want you to buy the crypto so it will go up in value. If they don’t personally have an ulterior motive, they may be repeating information that was shared by someone who does.
When reading articles about a certain crypto, look into whether the author has a vested interest in that crypto. Nine times out of 10 they will. Many authors disclose this fact by saying they own shares in the crypto. I respect their transparency AND I know to take what they write with a grain of salt. There are some articles that are not transparent though. It’s not necessarily because the author is trying to hide something. It could be because the article is attributed to a publication rather than an individual. This makes it hard to determine the motive.
To be on the safe side, treat every crypto “expert” as if they’re a used car salesman and you’ll be ok.
When shopping for a used car, most people know to take what the salesman says with a bit of skepticism. Salesmen are there to make the sale so they will tell you the great features of a car but they might leave out that there is an issue with the transmission, for example. It’s healthy to approach this situation with caution. We need to do the same with crypto experts.
Like salesmen, crypto experts (or enthusiasts) will talk about all the great qualities of a crypto: its lightning fast processing speed, its super safe security or its mega scalability. And they are often telling the truth. The crypto does have those qualities. It’s what they don’t say that you need to be aware of.
They may leave out that the crypto lacks a developer community or that it’s centrally controlled or a number of other important details about the crypto’s “engine.” They either purposely leave that information out or they are like many other market-focused crypto people and simply don’t understand the importance of those aspects.
If a crypto is doing well in the stock market then be extra wary! That’s when you’ll really see some peacocking. “Look at our numbers! We’re going to the moon!
Looking at only the stock market value of a crypto without considering its development community is equivalent to looking at the exterior of a used car and not looking at the engine before buying it.
Crypto is not at the stage where a stock market graph will tell you how it’s doing in the marketplace. Why? Because there IS no marketplace. Crypto is not being utilized on a mass scale. There are no market dynamics to analyze, There are no benchmarks or market indicators. The only thing driving the value of crypto is what people are willing to pay for it. Crypto is pure speculation at this point.
Many times the high numbers of a crypto are from people or groups pumping the price. There are even commercials from companies whose sole job is to pump a crypto. No joke. Here’s the LINK. Problem is when there’s a pump, not long after, there’s usually a dump. This often results in heavy losses for anyone who is unaware.
Investing in crypto is for two types of people: serious investors and gamblers. If you’re willing to do the research by learning what the development community is doing with a crypto and saying about the crypto before investing in the crypto then you’re a serious investor. If all you’re interested in is stock market graphs and the value highs and lows of a crypto in order to make a quick buck then you’re a gambler. There’s nothing in between.
The crypto market is not ready for casual investors. Casual investors often don’t do the proper research and they get too excited when they have a win and too depressed when they have a loss. Also, the crypto market is too volatile for the casual investor. There is no crypto blue-chip mutual fund that people can invest in to keep their money safe.
Most people would be better off as crypto users instead of crypto investors. Having more users will help create a crypto marketplace, which is what we need anyway to truly test crypto’s capabilities.
If you’re interested in investing in crypto, I would suggest talking to someone who knows what to look for. Ideally, talk to someone who knows what’s being said in the development community. For those that want a good deal on a car they ask their mechanic to look at it before they buy it. A mechanic knows what to look for and will ask the right questions. That’s what we need to do before investing in crypto. Either learn to ask the right questions yourself, or ask someone who does. Don’t let the crypto “experts” (a.k.a. car salesmen) convince you of anything before you’ve had a chance to look under the hood.
