Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

31–40 of 48 posts

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#31

Post by shepardrtc »

reefoctopus wrote: post #26
shepardrtc wrote: post #19

Ripple. Its more stable and is being adopted by financial institutions (AMEX being one of the biggest so far). I honestly think it'll be the first widely used crypto. Its a little different from Bitcoin, but I think it'll do well in the long run.

Isn't ripple centralized?

A little. Transaction validation is distributed amongst validators installed at organizations across the world. I think there's around 58 or so now, but they're pushing to have a lot more. And they're eventually going to have it where none of them are controlled at all by Ripple (the company). They've listed MIT and Microsoft as organizations already running validators, as well as a number of foreign companies I've never heard of (WorldLink, Telindus-Proximus Group, Bahnhof, and AT TOKYO?).

So yes, its a little more centralized than Bitcoin, but everything I read really gives me the impression that they're handling things in the right way, so as to have a balance between network performance and distributed safety, without any one person/group being able to manipulate the ledger. So there'll never be any mining farms that can throw their weight around.

If anyone is really curious, do your research and I think you'll find the tech to be pretty interesting.

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#33

Post by SnowingXIV »

BjoernKW wrote: post #3

A small amount in Bitcoin is the only speculation I indulge in. For now Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are just that: Casino money. In terms of real investment ETFs and - to a lesser extent - individual company shares are still the way to go.

Very much so, I've had a few coworkers ask about Bitcoin and if they should invest (because they've seen me use my lunch money). I say, it's an interesting subject just like maybe a slot machine that has a theme you like such as Game of Thrones. I do the same with some company stocks that look promising _and_ I enjoy following but again - not viewing these as a true investment.

I would love to strike gold, but it's complete gambling at this point and I'm likely not putting in enough to see life changing dividends. I never would recommend someone to invest in Bitcoin but if they have extra money and are looking to gamble in an interesting way go for it.

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#34

Post by mancerayder »

0bsidian wrote: post #10

I would buy more Bitcoin. The world needs a censorship-resistant digital vault to store wealth. Bitcoin is basically a very cheap "Swiss bank account as a service" for the world's unbanked. Some use cases I can think off the top of my head: (1) You are from Syria and need to flee war and escape into Europe – however bank transfers into Europe are almost impossible if you are a common Syrian. Bitcoin allows you to tak…

But the issue is this: hypothetically, let's say on Nov 12 I fled from country X and put my life savings (let's call it $5800) into one bitcoin valued at that. I put it in a hardware wallet, I transferred it electronically to another wallet, or perhaps I wrote the private key down someplace. Then, on Nov 27 my wealth is suddenly $9700. That's great. But how can I be sure it won't be down to $3000?

At least jewelry and watches are a relatively stable store of wealth.

There's a 'no one knows' stigma hanging around the cryptocurrencies. It's risky enough risking an escape from Syria, without adding a risk that traders are going to suddenly sell en-masse before you withdraw the funds.

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#37

Post by welikethepark »

shepardrtc wrote: post #19

Ripple. Its more stable and is being adopted by financial institutions (AMEX being one of the biggest so far). I honestly think it'll be the first widely used crypto. Its a little different from Bitcoin, but I think it'll do well in the long run.

What are your thoughts re: Stellar? I'd personally rather see them succeed than Ripple.

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#38

Post by aaavl2821 »

0bsidian wrote: post #10

I would buy more Bitcoin. The world needs a censorship-resistant digital vault to store wealth. Bitcoin is basically a very cheap "Swiss bank account as a service" for the world's unbanked. Some use cases I can think off the top of my head: (1) You are from Syria and need to flee war and escape into Europe – however bank transfers into Europe are almost impossible if you are a common Syrian. Bitcoin allows you to tak…

Something like 20-25% of Syrians have internet access. I saw a 40% figure for Venezuela and a 15% figure for Zimbabwe. Many internet-literate people are not comfortable with bitcoin; how would you get a meaningful number of people who have never used the Internet comfortable putting their family's net worth in some arcane instrument with a reputation for use in money laundering and crime?

Why would a person with low wealth invest their life savings into a highly volatile, recently developed instrument, when they can just buy jewelry, gold, etc

For the latter use case fewer objections readily come to mind, but this supports the reputation as a tool for those who are barred from capital markets due to illegal activity (whether real or politically contrived illegal activity)

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#39

Post by shepardrtc »

welikethepark wrote: post #37
shepardrtc wrote: post #19

Ripple. Its more stable and is being adopted by financial institutions (AMEX being one of the biggest so far). I honestly think it'll be the first widely used crypto. Its a little different from Bitcoin, but I think it'll do well in the long run.

What are your thoughts re: Stellar? I'd personally rather see them succeed than Ripple.

The idea pitched for Stellar is very feel-good, but there are a number of drawbacks. First of all, the creator is a little sketchy. The way he acted when he bailed on Ripple and set up Stellar was very childish. Second, the non-profit status is questionable. There are a lot of unknown people that stand to gain a lot of money if the currency increases in value. They claim to give away a lot of their currency, but very few people actually claim it, so in the end, the company itself gets to claim it (and set the stage for a profit down the road). They did get IBM to throw their name in to the mix, but even IBM said this was temporary.

I don't know. I just don't get a good feeling from them.

Re: Ask HN: IF the Bitcoin bubble bursts, where would you invest next?

#40

Post by djellybeans »

boobsbr wrote: post #13

Does anyone spend BTC? Seems like these upward spikes in value would incourage people to buy and hold indefinitely.

I spent some of mine on hobby electronics parts the last time it was about $400 per BTC. Not even mad. Just doing my part in the currency's use for goods.
Post reply on HN