... or am I being unreasonably pessimistic?
I only joined this forum a week or so ago and I'm loving it, all the different topics, all the different opinions and views. I think I'm in danger of getting the 'investing in crypto' bug and I'm gradually gearing up to dipping my toe, probably in BTC and ETH.
However, hold on a sec. This forum, understandably, is full of people that buy into the concept of cryptocurrency, have invested various sums, trade in the stuff and so on. My point? Everyone on here wants to see the value of cryptocurrency rise ... and rise ... and rise.
None of us have a crystal ball, if we did we'd be multi billionaires, however as much as I like the projected idea of BTC being worth in 5-10 years, is this sort of projection valid? Are we perhaps seeing an expected slowing down and perhaps even slight plateauing of BTC and an end to significant increases week by week?
As I say everyone on here quite rightly want to see the likes of BTC increase exponentially over the coming years, however we're all excited by the whole crypto thing. Are we therefore at risk of looking at the whole thing through rose tinted glasses, basing our hopes on the increases of the last few years that, surely, can't continue?
Am I right ... or wrong?
If Bitcoin didn't had any potential, it would have been long dead. Bitcoin has crossed the chasm between early adopters and early majority. The current Bitcoin adoption and the current demand reflects its price. The demand we have now is to an extent speculative in nature, but when long-term assumptions or predictions are made, it is not merely based on speculation, but Bitcoins utility as a store of value and a medium of exchange.
According to Satoshi Nakamoto.
A rational market price for something that is expected to increase in value will already reflect the present value of the expected future increases. In your head, you do a probability estimate balancing the odds that it keeps increasing.
Apart from being a store of value and medium of exchange, Bitcoin solves the problems of inflation, expropriation, taxes, financial repression and cross-border transactions. So basically the futuristic price of Bitcoin is dependent on its usefulness and the problems it solves.
Is the current price a reflection of the expected future increases. Yes, to an extent because Bitcoin has yet to evolve as a reliable medium of exchange, so it is an undervalued reflection.
So there is a rationale when people assume that Bitcoin price would increase in future.