Bitcoin: The Digital Gold Rush

Bitcoin looks here to stay, but will it be a niche or something more? The analogy to gold is useful, but with notable differences. At present, bitcoin is difficult to sell short, which can lead to near-term upward price pressure. That hedge funds, private equity firms, and other institutional investors are currently taking positions in bitcoin will possibly add to these near-term pressures. Valuation would involve an extraordinary amount of guesswork. Bitcoin has withstood many bumps, but there will be more to come. The long list (1,000+) of other cryptocurrencies hints at challenges to come, and while the overall technology will survive most other cryptocurrencies probably will not.