too large to ignore”, noted a new Bank of America (BofA) report titled
Digital Assets Primer: Only the First Inning.
And indeed, this is just the beginning, the very first step of the briskly blossoming crypto space, particularly in India, where an aggressive growth rate of almost 641 percent over the last 12 months, thanks to the rising popularity of well-known crypto exchanges like
CoinSwitch Kuber
, propelled the entire central and south Asian region to become one of the fastest-growing crypto markets globally as the crypto market here grew by 706 percent to reach almost 600 billion, reported
Chainalysis.
Furthermore, BofA research also observed that along with steady growth in this space with nearly 221 million people who have actively traded in crypto in recent times, even Defi platforms registered a massive
Indianised surge, almost 59 percent higher than both Pakistan and Vietnam. Even globally, institutional investors poured in almost 17 billion dollars in the Defi ecosystem.
And if you’re still not atop the crypto and Defi bandwagon, looking to get a solid footing into this space even as the world positively and rapidly takes to crypto, now’s the time! Here’s a 5-point checklist you need to tick off before you take this much-needed plunge in the crypto space, for the better!
ET Spotlight SpecialResearch, Research, and Research!
Cryptocurrency is one adventure you should definitely jump into, but not without adequate planning and research! Just because your friends are buying into an altcoin that is trending like wildfire at the moment, do not lose sight of the foundations of the crypto that will eventually lead to its growth in the long run!
The best way to start knowing more about a cryptocurrency that interests you is to take a look at its
whitepaper, which tells you all that you need to know about the currency like all its use cases, scalability, plans for the future, community engagement, and growth possibilities. If all that sounds too complex, you can always get all the information you want from crypto educational platforms like the Kuberverse, the CoinSwitch blog.
Here, you can check out the following parameters which will help you identify whether or not the coin has solid fundamentals or not, which include assessing the management quality, underlying technology of the coin, social presence, market capitalization, trading volumes, vision, and purpose, so that you know you’re making a reliable investment for the long run.
Only trade what you can afford to lose
With around 15 million Indian investors in the crypto space currently, large-sized institutional investors are making it big. Per the Chainalysis report, transfers worth 10 million dollars or more of cryptocurrency make up for around 42 percent of Indian transactions, as compared to 28 percent for Pakistan and 29 percent for Vietnam.
But for retail investors, while selling your kidneys for getting your hands on the latest hone is not good, albeit popularised idea, this is a strict no-no, especially when it comes to crypto. This is particularly because crypto is a highly volatile, relatively unregulated, and uncertain market, where fortunes can change within seconds. So, while it is important to be atop this rocketing market, it’s also important to play it safe and only invest amounts that do not pull you back adversely, when it comes to your financial health.
And while the prospect of gaining extremely lucrative, sky-high returns within a short span of time may sound very tempting, but, just like Akshay Kumar learned the hard way in
Phir Hera Pheri, there is no scheme that doubles money in 21 days, and even gains in cryptocurrency investments take patience and time to fructify.
ET Spotlight SpecialStrike a balance
For every Ajinkya Rahane, a team needs a Hardik Pandya as well! And for every Cheteshwar Pujara, an aggressive Virat Kohli is exactly what the team needs to win the game!
Just like you balance your asset allocation between risky and stable investments, make sure the cryptocurrencies in your portfolio are also balanced between crypto market leaders, stable and well-reputed coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano, Solana, and relatively lesser mainstream tokens like Dogecoin, Shiba Inu and more.
Also, remember to steer clear from coins that are not available on reputed exchanges like CoinSwitch Kuber, because this might be a red flag for the coin’s legitimacy. For every trending, newbie coin that you invest in that is raking short-term gains, you may want to be invested in fundamentally strong coins also which will cushion your losses and take your crypto portfolio miles ahead in the long run!
Verify and Protect!
The world of cryptocurrency is ripe with misinformation and scams, and to make sure you don’t fall victim to the same. Do not blindly trust every piece of information you get from social media and the internet when it comes to crypto!
Only trust authentic sources like a crypto whitepaper, information from renowned exchanges like
CoinSwitch Kuber
. Also, remember to securely store your crypto in safe software or hardware wallets, so that your hard-earned investments are not accessible easily.
It’s time to take this checklist up and start your stride in the cryptocurrency space, today!
Disclaimer: The above content is non-editorial, and TIL hereby disclaims any and all warranties, express or implied, relating to the same. TIL does not guarantee, vouch for or necessarily endorse any of the above content, nor is responsible for them in any manner whatsoever. The article does not constitute investment advice. Please take all steps necessary to ascertain that any information and content provided is correct, updated and verified.
