Nearly everyone who knows about Bitcoins has an opinion on its future. A multitudinous sea of optimists are saying that Bitcoins have ushered in a new era in international monetary operations and exchange and they believe that Bitcoins will do for money what the automobile did for transportation. That said, traders are flocking to Bitcoins exchange platforms, while miners are investing in hardware and mine on mining pools, e.g. GHASH.io, trusting that Bitcoins ARE the currency of the future.
On the other hand, naysayers have discounted the cryptocurrency as a domain of speculators and drug peddlers (remember Silk Route). Another branch, the neo-anarchists are prophesying that the cryptocurrency will deliver us from governments and their monetary systems.
What do the experts have to say? Here are a few thoughts.
Bitcoins as alternative to currencies hit by super inflation
Wence Casares, venture capitalist and founder of Lemon Wallet grew up in Argentina where for a long period the economy was in tatters. He says his people had to find out the hard way what happens when the government mismanages the currency. There is super-inflation, family savings are destroyed and money is not worth the paper it is printed on.
To many Argentinians, Bitcoins have come as a savior, especially when the government is cracking down on the dollar trade. They are investing their money into Bitcoins, where they expect it to be safe until the economy stabilizes and they can retrieve their money. From this, we get the idea that Bitcoins can be a good alternative to devalued currencies.
Bitcoins may be regulated
After the crash of the Mt. Gox Bitcoin trading platform, there is a growing clamor for the mechanism to be regulated. Micky Malka from Ribbit Capital, a venture capital company that invests in BitCoin ventures is optimistic that in a few years, BitCoins will come under regulations. He says that regulation will improve the stability of the system and eventually lead to the rise of an informed and rational regulatory structure.
The price of BitCoins may reach stratospheric levels
Another perspective is the price levels that Bitcoins will trade at, a few years from now. Let us see what industry insiders are saying about it. Kenneth Metral at Coingig believes that the price of Bitcoins will touch $5000 in five years but he is also quick to point out that the levels will be reached only if Bitcoin adoption surges and bigger players like Wall Street come in.
Alexander Lawn of KnCMiner has a more cautious view and he says that he would he happy to see Bitcoins rise in price but not by paying for it with the stability of the system. Like Kenneth Metral, he believes that the value of the cryptocurrency will increase with adoption. He is particularly rooting for developing countries to adopt it because then the price rise will be dramatic.
Mark Norton at Bitcoin Warrior says that the system (with respect to Bitcoins) will continue to face birthing pains for some time. Sudden spikes and crashes can be expected. The ending price will depend on developments (on the Bitcoin front) in different countries. He says that other factors like big ticket investors and the opinion of the US government will also define the future of Bitcoins. Note that he expects a Bitcoin to touch $50,000.
Takeaway
Whatever the future of Bitcoin will become, one thing for sure: It’s on landgrab mode right now. Small businesses who are brave enough to accept Bitcoin payments, and Bitcoin traders who believe in Bitcoin’s future value will enjoy first entry benefits. There are obviously risks to manage, but just as in any other business and financial decisions, more risks involved in something that would be a game changer in the industry.
Bitcoin is a game-changer, and what it needs right now is continuous maturing. Are you ready to take risks?
