That question seems to get more prevalent the longer we remain in a bear market. After all, many of us have been left essentially bag-holding until these damned prices decide to reverse their direction and we once again feel that euphoric rush of excitement. But are we simply just stuck in never-ending long cycles of speculative "pump and dumps" or actually invested in something that can have tangibly meaningful benefits in terms of real-world global financing, down the line?
Well, the state of the world economy would be the first place to look at and a website that depicts this in the starkest way possible can be found right here. A nightmarish view of our current fiat system. Money literally being printed into oblivion. Because, the thing is most of these countries are barely even able to pay the interest on their respective loans, leave alone sorting out their citizens needs and all the extraneous responsibilities that come with it. It's almost an economic "Doomsday" clock, waiting to go off and most certainly doesn't look pretty. This is further exacerbated by the fact that they all, in effect, rely on each other for a possible bail out. To be honest, I just don't see how this disastrous issue can ever be resolved.
So, alternate financial solutions will naturally be looked into, when the **** hits the fan. And here, we have this debtless, barrierless, globally compatible transactional option ready and waiting in the wings for when this impending calamity strikes. Whilst the "powers-that-be" run around like headless chickens on a slaughter farm, it seems like a very viable premise that something like crypto currency, will gain mass popularity at a viral rate. After all, let's be real here. Your average Joe isn't really too worried about issues like these. As long as he can do his weekly grocery shopping, pay the bills and embark on the odd holiday, life is nicely catered for. In other words, ignorance is bliss. However when governments start running dry on the coffers and severe austerity measures hit, the world will suddenly become a very different place to live in altogether. And make no mistake. Even the most supposedly lucrative of countries will suffer similar effects, albeit to varying degrees of pain.
Well, that was a cheery perspective on things, wasn't it! But all jokes aside, I do see a chance in regards to events like this, on the horizon. It's futile to predict the actual timelines involved, but all I do know is that I'd rather be stocked up with the digital antidote than wake up one day to these possibilities all of a sudden, becoming a very real reality. Crypto currencies and their intrinsically unique attributes, make me a firm believer in it's future prospects. It is something that could work "as is" right now, given some development in scalability, friendlier GUI's, etc. But the core technology does what it says on the tin. And trust me when I say people adapt quickly. That's primarily why we've thrived as a species straight up to the number one spot on the evolutionary chart. Even those of us most resist to change, will ultimately bow to peer pressure. A humanistic trait that could work well with the likes of crypto currency.
So, the next time you feel down about the markets, take a step back and look at the bigger picture. We may have accidentally stumbled into an arena much larger than we could have ever imagined. Don't believe me or did that sound a tad too dramatic for you? Well, BTC's price in 2010 was 8 cents. BTC's price in 2017 hit almost $20,000.
Go figure. :)