All of us have viewed with trepidation the meteoric rise of Cryptocurrency values.

To be frank, Bitcoin and the like rely upon the ‘next biggest fool’ coming down the track who are prepared to pay more. It doesn’t produce income, and it certainly doesn’t pay a dividend, and the early adopters are evangelistic in their defence of the concept, which is all well and good for them when they may have got in early.

In the last 12 months, Bitcoin (the most well-known) has grown 236%, while Ethereum (lesser-known) has grown 756%. Where is the value?

We can also see from the graph below that the number of cryptocurrencies is now to the point of 7,500 and is still growing. I believe crypto is here to stay, but there will be consolidation – 7,500 will eventually come down to a dozen, and there will be winners and losers. With the number of monies going into it in speculation (which is all it is), government regulation is just around the corner.

In 2017 Bitcoin fell by 80% in 2 days. Then it was narrowly held and didn’t affect many people – now it’s more widely held, and the risks and the effects are more significant.

If you own crypto, acknowledge that it’s not an investment – it’s a punt and keep your eyes open to the reality that what rises so fast will ultimately come back to earth.