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Bitcoin is back.
After months of doom and gloom from pundits, it appears that Bitcoin has reached a level of price stability that its naysayers had long claimed to be all but impossible.
In late July, the price of Bitcoin came just shy of $42,000 per BTC. Throughout the month of July, BTC hovered between $30K and $40K per token, with the price trending up as time went on. Although these prices are well below its all-time high set in April (>$60K), its current price point was still unheard of as of only January.
Following Bitcoin’s price correction in mid-May, the digital currency has been steadily trending up rather than crashing to zero as some bearish analysts once predicted. Now would be an opportune time to go long on BTC while the currency is still in the early days of its rebound.
Plus, Ethereum, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, is about to undergo its long-awaited Eth2 software upgrade. In early August, the Ethereum blockchain will be adjusted to lower transaction fees and alter supply. Although the long-term ramifications aren’t yet clear, many analysts forecast a large price increase in Ether in the months ahead.
All around the world, we’re seeing a renaissance in cryptocurrency adoption.
In June, the government of El Salvador announced they would be adopting Bitcoin as legal tender and a co-official currency. Now, Spain, a country with a massive $1.45 trillion economy, is considering allowing mortgage payments in Bitcoin.
Russia, a country once fiercely opposed to Bitcoin, is now actively supporting the release of formerly frozen cryptocurrency funds in a move that signals that they’re warming to the idea of Bitcoin liberalization.
Meanwhile, the stock market is falling and U.S. jobs growth is slower than expected. To make matters worse, Wall Street is buying up all of America’s middle class homes and shutting the door on would-be homeowners. The chart below (Fig. 1) indicates just how bad the national real estate market has gotten in recent years. None of this spells optimism for the economy.
Fig. 1. Source: CNN
Luckily, ordinary investors can fight back by investing in cryptocurrency. As a decentralized asset, it cannot be controlled, manipulated, or skewed in favor of corporate interests. By getting involved now, before the institutional players pile in, you can regain some of the financial power that Wall Street has taken for itself.
Smart money acts now. Whether you want to build wealth or protect your savings in an uncertain economy, you should consider diversifying across safe-haven assets such as gold, silver, and cryptocurrencies. This way, your wealth won’t be unnecessarily exposed to risk in the stock or real estate markets alone.
The good news is that Bitcoin isn’t the only game in town if you want to diversify your investment portfolio. With Ethereum’s blockchain update occurring in early August, investors would do well to take a position in Ether before the rest of the market follows suit. If you’re interested in getting started, open an Ethereum IRA today, or simply add Ether or Bitcoin to a self-directed IRA.
Mark Turner is an author and editor at Sophisticated Investor. He has over two decades of experience in the financial industry as a broker in both Chicago and New York and has written for several top tier publications. He currently covers the topics of alternative investments, geopolitical events, US economy, portfolio diversification and others.
