Cryptocurrency

I worked in one blockchain project, but now the project is dead (it was destroyed by one very disgusting incompetent manager)

I started at the end of March -- at the prompting of a close friend. He'd been doing it around four weeks and already had a significant profit from his investments. I bought several of the same high-performing coins, and what happens? They stalled and then I started registering a loss. Actually, two climbed for a while, but I held my nerve and didn't sell. Now they've traced back down and I'm barely breaking even. At the moment, the crypto market is in a slump, due to Bitcoin dumping (the Biden administration and Elon Musk are partly to blame), pulling many coins down with it (whatever Bitcoin does, the other currencies tend to follow). But that also presents a good opportunity to buy. I just bought some more crypto tonight, in fact. But smaller amounts than when I started. Hopefully, I'm learning! But the crypto market is rough and unpredictable. There's no guarantee you'll make anything -- you could, indeed, lose a substantial sum. Most people who invest in crypto actually lose money. But if you're smart, patient, and have some luck on your side, big gains are certainly attainable. Learn the tech though and do your research! I'm still very new to the scene and trying to build my knowledge.

God, anyone who gets into crypto rapidly starts talking like a dickhead, don't they? 

Yep, I'm part of that cult now. The only thing that is stopping me becoming more immersed in the whole thing is my own apathy. I struggle to stick with something too long. But this time, I'm trying to force myself to keep going -- to walk through fire if necessary.

The existing political/economic system only really works for the wealthy -- an inescapable fact more and more people are becoming aware of. Crypto is a small way of fighting back and trying to gain for yourself within an evolving (if chaotic and unstable) niche. Decentralised finance is the future. Hindsight may always be 20/20, but Bitcoin was only $1 in 2011, and a few weeks ago, it was at a new high of $63,000. So if you'd put $100 into Bitcoin ten years ago (not an earth-shattering sum), you'd have had $6,300,000 back in April -- enough to afford a luxurious home and stop working (in slave labour conditions) for life. Bitcoin may have lost half its value since then, but you'd still comfortably be a millionaire. And, of course, there are plenty of coins way, way, waaaay cheaper than Bitcoin -- some mere fractions of a dollar. Most won't go anywhere, but a few will make you a handsome profit in time. It's about picking the right ones and getting to grips with the rules of the game. 

Unfortunately (and fortunately), market conditions are changing, and now the US is threatening to regulate crypto even more. China is also very hostile to it (outwardly). Governments are getting scared. Scared of the little guy. As they always have been. Even though crypto has a dark side (criminal activities), and you don't get the "protection" that centralised finance provides, it's worth the risk (provided you don't throw every penny you have into it -- and even then, good luck to ya!). When you see the blatant financial crimes that the elites are able to get away with, like tax avoidance or intimidating their workforce from unionising, even during/after a pandemic, you realise the system could provide for everyone but there are many working to stop that happening. It's exciting because crypto is only growing -- and "business as usual", or aping the wisdom of the past, doesn't cut it anymore. To the moon, y'all!

2 months. I'm currently studying Golang, because Etherium is written in Golang, but I've never seen Buterin.

We'll try to keep this thread extra moderated

Ha! I knew I was opening the floodgates there.


That's right. There's enormous temptation to sell when you're making a profit. But if you see a reasonable gain, the better thing to do is probably withdraw a slice of it, say, 20% or something in that region. Of course, it depends on your circumstances and what you're trying to do. If you have a pressing debt, or some costs you'd like to get rid of, you might want to pull a bigger fraction out. On a dirty altcoin, if you strike it lucky, maybe you don't want to press your luck further and so you choose to take the whole lot out. But Bitcoin has been estimated to hit a million dollars in a few years. Whether it does or it doesn't, it's had tremendous gains so far. You've probably heard of the Bitcoin pizza guy:

www.investopedia.com/news/bitcoin-pizza-day-celebrating-20-million-pizza-order/

We have just had Bitcoin Pizza Day, in fact (May 22nd). 


You're right. Market capitalisation is much more important. I visit CoinMarketCap daily. I have some ADA. I missed that DOGE surge last month. My friend talked me out of buying the latter because it's a "joke coin"; though his enthusiasm for ADA seems justified. 




It's not so much buying them when you are going to use them -- quite the opposite, I think. It's buying them when you don't need them; or at least you shouldn't need them right now. That's what should prevent you putting all your money in. Because that's pretty foolish. While it's possible to turn a quick profit from crypto, it's not very wise to expect an immediate return -- or even a return at all. Crypto fluctuates a lot. You should only put in what you can afford to lose; not what you can't.

Down the line, if you make a profit, it's up to you. You can keep it in and hope for greater gains, withdraw a fraction, withdraw all of it, exchange your crypto for usable tokens, trade it for other crypto currencies (or buy the same currency back at a lower rate if it dips) -- do what you want, basically. But you do have to be aware of tax obligations. You should read the tax rules for your country of residence (as Arch Duke said) and know what your liabilities are.

You even need to check that your bank won't freeze your account. I was actually discussing that last night with my crypto friend. Banks are somewhat hostile to crypto. While it should be fine to transfer small amounts on and off an exchange (or, indeed, multiple exchanges), bigger amounts and anomalous activity can sometimes cause a bank to suspect fraud and lock your account. People also have trouble with an exchange letting them withdraw sometimes. That's another reason you should keep most of your money off an exchange and in a wallet (where it is also more secure). As the saying goes: don't put all your eggs in one basket.

Another thing is staking. If you stake your money and want to get access to what you've staked, you may not be able to immediately relinquish it from the staking pool (per the rules of the pool). If there's an adverse price movement, you may just have to grit your teeth if you're trying to promptly dispose of your crypto or wanting to trade it. Crypto differs greatly from accumulating interest on savings in a bank account in that way. If you leave your savings alone in a bank account, the money can only go up (but only by relatively pathetic amounts these days). But with crypto, even when you gain "interest" through staking, your crypto could still plummet in value. There are risks to be aware of. But there are rewards, too.