The gradual surge of Bitcoin is becoming a topic for discussion, an innovation that is already disrupting the fintech industry.
According to Bitcoin.org, “Bitcoin is an innovative payment network and a new kind of money.
In other words, Bitcoin is not like the Dollar or Naira note, it is a digital currency or virtual currency.
“As a fee-only financial planner, I have a fiduciary responsibility to my clients to only recommend investments that are suitable for their specific investment plan and risk profile,” says Phillip Christenson, a Financial Coach at Phillip James Financial
While my clients’ risk tolerances run the gamut from conservative to aggressive, Bitcoin, with its short history, volatile price movements, and lack of intrinsic value is hard to ever recommend as an investment.
While one could make a case for an investment in currencies (due to their diversification benefits), a purchase of Bitcoin would be pure speculation, akin to penny stocks,”
For the fact that Bitcoin doesn’t have any form of regulation at this, there is still skepticism about its stability at least reason being that it is yet to be widely accepted as a legitimate method of payment
Anton Ivanov, Founder of DreamsCashTrue.com, says that presently, Bitcoin is neither a valid form of currency nor an investment.
“Until it gains widespread acceptance and price stability, it will never be a mainstream method of payment.
And from an investing perspective, Bitcoin’s uncertain future and the lack of any meaningful fundamental metrics make it a speculation at best, and gambling at worst”.
In his view, Andrew Magliochetti, Managing Director, Maroon Capital Group believes that Bitcoin can’t be a viable long-term currency unless, and until, it is more broadly accepted as an exchange medium for items of real value (i.e., these goods and services).
These challenges are interconnected, and the current regulatory assault is the single most important aggravating factor to these circumstances.”
Despite the division amongst financial experts on the evolution of Bitcoin, there seems to be a uniform decision that the virtual currency still needs some level of acceptability.
There is one thing that must be agreed on, says George Burke Former CMO of Crypto-currency Exchange.
“Bitcoin is much safer and cheaper for a merchant to receive a payment in Bitcoin over a credit card, only very few merchants in the world accept it, which is keeping the awareness, price, and usefulness of Bitcoin low.
So, until accepting Bitcoin becomes ubiquitous, where purchasers and vendors won’t ever need to exchange it for fiat currency because they can spend it in most places.
Bitcoin users need to continually exchange their coins for $USD or look for services to make spending coins as easy as swiping a credit card”.