Advice for getting into cryptocurrencies

As with any new technology, you will see a lot of evangelists and “hype”. I think the underlying blockchain technology is here to stay, and will gradually lead to significant innovations in a number of areas in the financial sector and beyond.

The challenge for any investor or speculator is doing the homework necessary to find the right coins/companies in the field, and accepting the risk of that guess. Back in the late 70s and early 80s at the dawn of the personal computer era, you could have bought into Apple - or into RadioShack, Altair, Cromemco, etc. For every Apple or Microsoft there were a few IBMs (did OK, but didn’t really continue to develop the technology) and a LOT of firms that went bust.

Right now in the crypto space you see the same sort of thing. The technology has the potential to do great things, but most of the coins and companies are going to fail. Some because they don’t have the best developers; some because they lack marketing / UX experience; some because they lack business experience or maturity.

So if you have a few dollars to gamble with and you are interested in the area, by all means, jump in! Do your homework, play with things, read up. Be prepared to buy RadioShack because it’s the most popular at the time and watch it go under. Be prepared to buy Apple and watch it stagnate for a period and look like it’s not going to make it. Look for the innovative leaders like Jobs or Gates backed by good teams, and maybe you’ll end up owning early shares of the Blockchain Apple or Microsoft down the road. It will be fun, anyways, and you’ll learn a lot.

Just be aware that the cryptocoin world, in addition to being in its early childhood, is also the wild west. There are a LOT of cheats and scammers and fools. You will see Ponzi schemes and frauds and robbers. You’ll see snake oil salespeople and the charismatic guy with the great story who has no real business and preys on suckers. If you’re not someone who has a strong skeptical streak, who always questions what sounds like a really good story in order to figure out what’s really going on then you will quickly lose your money. You can learn a lot from that, too.