In the midst of the crypto winter, many investors are considering an important question – is it too late to buy Bitcoin? This guide will provide a detailed answer to this question.
We consider the performance history of BTC and evaluate its future potential to determine whether or not it is a good idea to invest in Bitcoin right now.
Is It too Late to Bitcoin? Our Summary
For those who are short on time, we have included the key points from our analysis below:
- Bitcoin isn’t a new cryptocurrency anymore. It was launched over a decade ago and has evolved to become the most popular cryptocurrency in the market.
- Bitcoin has also managed to attain widescale adoption across many sectors. Today, Bitcoin is accepted as payment by many online platforms and merchants.
- Financial institutions have also acknowledged the potential of Bitcoin, and even its smaller units – satoshis. In fact, there are several new Bitcoin-based investments available in the market, such as futures and ETFs.
All that being said, the market already knows what it can get with Bitcoin – hence, it is unlikely for this cryptocurrency to reveal any new use cases that could propel a sudden rush in demand.
Nevertheless, Bitcoin still has a long way to go, especially if its adoption increases. But there is no guarantee that Bitcoin will repeat history by going through another explosive growth phase.
Bitcoin Price History
Is it too late to buy Bitcoin? To answer this question, we should first analyze the historical performance of this digital asset. In the following sections, we break down the journey of Bitcoin.
Bitcoin Price – 2009 to 2017
Bitcoin’s story dates back to 2008 when an anonymous person known as Satoshi Nakamoto published the project’s white paper. However, the first transaction that gave Bitcoin monetary value was documented in 2009. According to records, in 2009, a Finnish computer science student known online as Sirius sold 5,050 BTC coins for $5.02.
In other words, when Bitcoin started, a single BTC coin was worth around $0.0009. By the beginning of 2013, the price of Bitcoin had increased to around $13. Throughout 2013, the price of Bitcoin rose, gaining about 8,700% in value, to reach $1,150 by the end of the year.
However, by 2014, the pace of growth weakened. Through 2015 and 2016, Bitcoin increased slowly, although with volatility. By January 2017, the price of Bitcoin had increased back up to $1,000 and skyrocketed to $20,000 by the year-end.
Bitcoin Performance in 2024
2023 has proved to be a challenging year for the global markets. The world economy is witnessing high levels of inflation, and the fears of a recession are causing concern for investors.
Moreover, rising interest rates have also led to a general reduction in investments. Due to these factors, the broader crypto market, including Bitcoin, saw an extended bearish phase.
However, as the broader market revived from the bearish pressure, BTC has been up over 90% as it broke the $30,000 resistance barrier and reached almost $32k in July.
The price has since dipped, however, and investors can buy Bitcoin for around $28,400 at press time. Despite falling around 57% from its all-time high, Bitcoin remains one of the decade’s best investments.
For instance, since January 2017, the value of Bitcoin has increased by about 1,500%. During the same period, the S&P 500 increased only by around 75%. Needless to say, there are only a few assets that offer such high returns.
Bitcoin enthusiasts hope that this ‘crypto winter‘ is only a temporary dip and that the value of BTC will increase again – as history has repeatedly shown before – especially with the Bitcoin ‘halving’ expected in mid-2024.
Historically, the halving, where the rewards for each solved Bitcoin block are chopped in half, has driven huge volume and price gains, sparking large bull runs.
Analysts at global investment bank Standard Chartered have even predicted that BTC could be priced at $125,000 in 2024.
Bitcoin Price Prediction 2025, 2030
We have included a price forecast for the upcoming years to offer a long-term outlook for Bitcoin.
- End of 2024 – The next Bitcoin halving is likely to take place in mid-2024, cutting down the number of new BTC tokens being released. If demand for Bitcoin grows, the price of BTC could go up even more. Some analysts believe Bitcoin could reach a new all-time high of $75,000 by the end of 2024.
- End of 2025 – Over the next couple of years, other altcoins could emerge to be more popular. However, Bitcoin adoption might also go up as it becomes more mainstream. As such, according to some analysts, Bitcoin could hit a value of $100,000 towards the last month of 2025.
- End of 2030 – By 2030, the crypto market is expected to become a disruptive force, with digital currencies being accepted as payment by many merchants. Should this happen, some analysts argue that the Bitcoin price could easily cross the $100,000 level. The most bullish analysts believe BTC could even reach $1 million per token.
Bear in mind that this Bitcoin price prediction is based on the past performance and future prospects of this cryptocurrency. However, there is no guarantee that the price of Bitcoin will move as speculated.
Therefore, investors should only risk the money they can afford to lose. Moreover, although Bitcoin could make a good addition to a crypto portfolio – it is wise to diversify into other digital assets to reduce the overall risk.
Bitcoin Utility – How Could it be Used in the Future?
Given that BTC token prices have plummeted in the past year, is it too late to invest in Bitcoin? To answer this, investors should consider the future growth potential of this cryptocurrency.
Below, we discuss the key catalysts that could drive the value of Bitcoin in the coming years.
Growing Institutional Adoption
One of the most attractive characteristics of Bitcoin is its weak correlation to other financial assets – such as stocks and commodities.
This detached position offers Bitcoin an edge in the market, especially in terms of diversification. For instance, many investors choose to buy Bitcoin to hedge their portfolio against a potential market downturn.
Given this demand for Bitcoin, financial institutions have also developed many Bitcoin-focused securities. For example, there are several crypto ETFs that offer direct and indirect exposure to Bitcoin, in addition to derivates such as futures.
In recent months, dozens of spot Bitcoin ETFs have been applied for by major investment firms such as BlackRock and Fidelity – showing that institutional adoption of the token is not going away.
Real World Transactions
It is possible that Bitcoin could become a medium of exchange in real-world transactions. For example, some crypto enthusiasts have started learning how to buy a car with BTC in 2024.
- When making money transfers using Bitcoin, individuals can benefit from lower transaction fees and higher speeds, which makes it a good choice of digital currency for global remittance.
- Furthermore, many online merchants have also started accepting Bitcoin as payment. As of 2022, prominent companies such as Mircosoft, Tesla, Home Depot, Starbucks, and many others have partnered with cryptocurrency providers to accept BTC payments.
- In addition to this, we have also seen the emergence of Bitcoin casinos. The best Bitcoin gambling sites allow players to fund their accounts with cryptocurrencies, facilitating fast transactions and anonymity.
Some of these Bitcoin use cases were practically non-existent a few years ago. With the growing usage of smartphones and the easy availability of the internet, Bitcoin has become more accessible than ever.
Moreover, Bitcoin has a limited supply and has adopted a halving mechanism that can reduce the circulating pool over time. The next halving will occur in 2024, which can increase BTC’s demand and can help drive the price of Bitcoin in the future.
This halving will reduce mining rewards from 6.25 to 3.125 Bitcoin, a factor known to affect Bitcoin’s price in the past. For example, the 2012 halving triggered a massive price surge, with gains exceeding 1,000%. Similarly, the 2016 halving was followed by a substantial 280% increase in Bitcoin’s price in the subsequent months.
Growing Crypto Infrastructure
Is it Too Late to Buy Bitcoin? – What the Experts Say
Bitcoin might be the most popular cryptocurrency; however, that doesn’t mean all investors stand by this digital asset. In fact, some notable financial investors have raised their concerns about Bitcoin and the rise of cryptocurrencies.
Warren Buffett, one of the wealthiest investors globally, has a skeptical stance toward cryptocurrencies. On several occasions, Buffett mentioned that he believes cryptocurrencies are worthless and hold no intrinsic value.
At the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholders meeting in 2022, Buffet was quoted saying:
‘If you owned all of the Bitcoin in the world and you offered it to me for $25, I wouldn’t take it.’
Well, that delivers a clear picture of what Buffett thinks about Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Bill Ackman is another prominent investor who shares the same view as Buffet. Ackman is the founder of the hedge fund management company Pershing Square Capital Management, and according to him, Bitcoin is a purely speculative asset that he wouldn’t invest in.
On the other hand, Elon Musk is confident about the prospects of Bitcoin. In November 2022, Musk tweeted that Bitcoin would make it through the crypto winter, although it might take a while.
Musk isn’t the only investor who is an avid supporter of Bitcoin. Michael Saylor, Barry Silbert, and Michael Novogratz are other well-known American investors who own Bitcoin and continue to believe in the rise of this cryptocurrency.
As is evident, there are mixed opinions in the market regarding the future of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Considering that the price of Bitcoin is severely influenced by social perception, it would be wise to pay attention to what popular investors say about this digital asset.
After all, a single tweet by prominent personalities can alter the landscape of crypto.
As mentioned above, institutional investors such as Standard Chartered and BlackRock are hugely bullish on the future of Bitcoin as an investment vehicle and in 2023 have continually advised clients to stack up on BTC.
Is it Too Late to Buy Bitcoin?
Is Bitcoin still a good investment? In a nutshell, Bitcoin continues to be one of the top choices of investors. In a span of 13 years, Bitcoin has gone from an obscure fad to a mainstream form of investment.
Given its success and future prospects, Bitcoin can be a viable option for those looking to gain exposure to cryptocurrencies, especially as it is considered one of the least volatile and risky investments in the space.
At the price of about $28,000 as of writing, many experts argue that Bitcoin is one of the most undervalued cryptos available right now, with many institutional analysts believing BTC will go to six figures and beyond in 2024, amid the next halving cycle.
However, it might be some time before we witness monumental growth like the bull market of 2020-2021. That being said, if investors are looking for cryptocurrencies with the maximum upside potential, there are certainly better options out there, although they come with a higher risk factor.
Why Bitcoin ETF Token Could Be a Better Investment Than Bitcoin
As we noted above, Bitcoin has already positioned itself as a strong contender in the crypto market. Nevertheless, investors should also consider diversifying their crypto portfolio to mitigate the risks and increase their chances of making profits.
To find the best altcoins with the most upside potential, investors can keep an eye out for crypto presales.
Crypto presales offer the opportunity to invest in new and innovative projects. Moreover, crypto presale tokens are sold at a discount, and they cost only a fraction of the price of Bitcoin.
Below, we have included an overview of Bitcoin ETF Token, an alternative to Bitcoin that has been gaining traction among the crypto investment community.
Bitcoin ETF Token – Exceptional Bitcoin Alternative Positioning Itself For BTC ETF Approval
Bitcoin ETF Token ($BTCETF) is the top alternative to Bitcoin right now. It offers the benefits of presale investment, such as automatic price increases during its presale and a 5,500% APY, and it is still most likely going to correlate heavily with the Bitcoin markets.
In other words, it provides a lot of the benefits of Bitcoin investment, with few of the drawbacks.
Specifically, Bitcoin ETF Token is tied to the fate of Bitcoin ETF approval. Its roadmap ties in with expected Bitcoin-related events in the future, such as the price reaching $100,000 and the approval of Bitcoin ETFs by the Securities and Exchange Commission. At each of these roadmap events, five in total, the 5% burn tax will be reduced by 1%, all the way down to 0%.
A total of 525 million of the 2.1 billion supply is set to be burned. This is quite a large figure, amounting to 25% of the overall supply. Of the remainder, 40% (840 million) of the total allocation goes to the presale, 25% (525 million) to staking, and 10% (210 million) to liquidity. The price per token is $0.005, though this will have risen to $0.0068 by the end of the presale.
So this alternative offers price appreciation throughout the presale, sky-high APY, and a 25% token burn to promote price appreciation. None of these benefits are on offer with direct Bitcoin investment. And there is also a good chance that this coin will appreciate more than Bitcoin, should ETF approval takes place. After all, this is what the campaign has been created for, banking on the long-awaited Bitcoin ETF approval to finally materialize.
Those interested in this new presale should join the Bitcoin ETF Token Twitter and Telegram channels for key updates related to Bitcoin ETF approval.
For a more comprehensive understanding of what this ERC-20 presale is all about, it’s best to examine the Bitcoin ETF Token Whitepaper in detail.
Conclusion
In summary, Bitcoin remains the de-facto cryptocurrency of choice for many investors and as such, will likely remain the largest digital asset by market capitalization. At current prices, Bitcoin represents a major bargain, at least when compared to its prior all-time high.
With that said, diversification is key in the cryptocurrency markets, and thus – many investors consider alternative projects in addition to Bitcoin. In this regard, Bitcoin ETF Token has the potential to become one of the fastest-growing cryptocurrencies as we move into 2023.
It is positioning itself intelligently for expected Bitcoin ETF approval, which could be one of the biggest milestones in the history of the crypto markets, drastically increasing market cap and the price of BTC and altcoins. It also provides high APY and a presale discount, making it the perfect alternative to both Bitcoin and Bitcoin ETFs.