2018 turned out to be a disaster year for many investors in . Expectations were high after the crazy price increases of and other witnessed prior to and in 2017. Unfortunately, after an all-time high in January, crypto prices soon dropped to a low point and many coins lost up to 95% of their value. The many hacks, scams, regulations, the Google/Facebook ban on crypto-related advertisements, and the war in the Cash camp attributed to the negative exchange rates. In the past year the media declared dead and its link to the many “” ensured that those rates were highly dependent on those of “mother” and therefore also decreased significantly. Despite in the Netherlands showing that the number of investors in has decreased by 100,000, another showed that the number of investors worldwide has doubled. During my lectures I am often queried about the most important developments in the field of that 2019 has in stock for us. Here are my top 5:
Mass with BAKKT?
BAKKT is one of the most discussed and promising projects that must make accessible to the general public. The preparations for the launch of this open and regulated platform should give users the option to not only to trade in and assets, but to also and spend them.
With the platform being funded by the owner of the New York Stock Exchange and built in collaboration with Microsoft and Starbucks, it has the involvement of some serious organizations and individuals.
The involvement of Starbucks is very interesting, since most payments in the United States are currently made with the Starbucks app, with Apple Pay. In addition, the regulated in a transparent platform and the solution it offers for transaction times has from many large institutional investors and it may turn the stock market upside down. Unfortunately, the launch of the platform has already been delayed twice, since more time is needed for both streamlining the customer registration process and for obtaining approval from the US government. However, various authoritative experts from the sector claim that this won’t last much longer.
Will there finally be an in 2019?
While BAKKT is ready to be launched, it remains very unclear when the first will be approved. An Exchange Traded Fund is a so-called “index tracker”, which follows the official price of an asset without the owner owning it. It enables investors to easily speculate on the price rise or fall of without owning the crypto. This offers a solution to many investors since they don’t want all the hassle that comes with purchasing and other . It is that the approval of the first will see a large influx of institutional investors with significant amounts of money to spend. Often the comparison is made with the first ETFs on gold, which has the value of the precious metal many times.
There have been dozens of proposals for ETFs, but they have all been rejected by the US , as they consider the market to not yet be sufficiently regulated and developed. According to the , there is still insufficient evidence for the required size and volume of the market and too much chance of manipulation and fraud. The STC claims that there is a lack of regulations to prevent this from happening and, if it does, to punish it. The application from VanEck, the party for its ETFs on gold, currently has the of success. Unfortunately, the decision on this application has already been postponed a few times. The of practical solutions to combat fraud is the reason why various experts don’t expect that it will be approved in 2019. That would be a pity as the approval of an will be the “stamp of approval” many institutional investors are waiting for to invest in .
Does the institutional tidal wave follow?
Apart from BAKKT and ETFs, there are also many other projects that can facilitate a tidal wave of institutional money flowing into the cryptomarket. This will of course be one of the most important developments for the market for both and influence on prices. Many companies are eager to invest, but the of the right infrastructure and regulations has made them hesitate.
Various products that resemble ETFs are already active. BinckBank offers a and in Switzerland can be used to invest in a basket of via and . It is also possible to trade in via Bitmex, providing you first buy Bitcoins yourself.
Various launches of crypto platforms are also expected from the largest players in the global financial market in the coming years. For example, one of the biggest asset managers in the world, Fidelity, will from early 2019 to allow large investors to invest in and other . The American Nasdaq too will offer .
The German and also expect to be able to offer services to enable institutional investors to trade in from the start of this year.
Performing Projects
One of the positive aspects of the cryptomarket crash in the past year has been the self-cleaning capability. Almost all assume that 90–95% of the cryptos will fail. According to the site, we have reached the halfway mark of the 2,000 . This is important for the sector, since many scams and drool projects attributed to the poor reputation. Companies in the bear market that endured the ‘survival of the fittest’ test have worked hard in the past year on the products that they have promised. Many are therefore expected in the coming year, which will of course have a positive influence on the rate.
The rapid emergence of meant that governments lagged behind with their regulations. Fraud has been and continues to be committed and there are still things happening with regular stock on a daily basis that are prohibited and punishable. That is why have banned the trade. Good is desperately needed to give the market a more trustworthy character, to provide stability and to enable it to achieve its real potential. Various authorities are working hard to soon establish a framework with regulations. For example, much is expected from the guidelines that the G7’s Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF) will publish in June, and the US government has already prepared several proposed frameworks that are ready for publication.
Of course, there are many other developments that the coming year has in stock. The price increases witnessed in recent weeks, and the positive sentiment I have noticed very clearly among the many investors and experts, make me look forward to the coming year!
Published at Sun, 26 May 2019 14:07:21 +0000
