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Like all of you, I'm in. I don't claim to understand crypto-currencies fully, but I believe in their potential. Which took a long time to accomplish.
I remember reading about bitcoin in a forum in 2007. Not understanding it fully and partly being pre-occupied with other things that a teenager consider more important.
Reflecting on that period, I identified 5 reasons why I didn't take it more serious earlier.
This isn't real money!
Took some time to realise that real money (USD, EUR, etc..) isn't real either. It's an artificial created holder of value. Why can Crypto-currencies not be the same?
It's a hype!
Looking back at various other bubbles (e.g. internet bubble 2000), this was a tough one to overcome. How do you know which one will come out on top and which will not? There is no guarantee, but the more I read and educate myself, the more convinced I am that it isn't a hype (some of the may).
It's difficult!
Yes, you can't walk into a bank and open it like a traditional account. But not being traditional, doesn't mean it's bad. By not being locked into the old way of doing things, new and better methods can be applied. It's getting easier every day.
It's not an investment vehicle!
Being used to the forex market, I perceived it in a similar way. I had no idea that methods such as staking or lending would be avenue's for passive income and value/growth investment. Still exploring this further as there is a lot more potential.
There are better places to put your money!
This is the one I still struggle with. Do I invest into crypto-currencies? Into real-estate (or REITs), into ETF's, into meme-stocks (e.g. GME/AMC), into bonds (does anybody?).
So many options, but that is the beauty as well. I view it now as an additional diversification of my portfolio. I do not invest 100%, but am increasing the allocation.
What were the lessons that you learned and the hurdles you had to overcome before investing into crypto-currencies?
