Unclear application prospects, huge market volatility
Bitcoin rushes higher, beware of risks
In the near future, if there is any price fluctuation that can stir the nerves of investors the most, Bitcoin must be one of them.
Since the end of January this year, the Bitcoin market price has risen rapidly, from 30,423.10 U.S. dollars each to a high of 57,492.90 U.S. dollars, an increase of nearly 90% in just one month.
In mid-March, the price of Bitcoin rose to more than 60,000 US dollars, which was more than 10 times higher than that of last year's low tide period, and then fell again.
Bitcoin in China has also become popular. Some people regard Bitcoin as an "alternative asset." Some young people are eager to try it. However, many people question the true value of Bitcoin and believe that it is necessary to pay close attention to the current existing ones. Risks, it is recommended that relevant parties strengthen supervision.
Transaction prices ride on the "roller coaster"
What is Bitcoin?
According to reports, Bitcoin is the earliest "point-to-point" virtual encrypted digital currency.
It is generated through a large number of calculations based on a specific computer algorithm, and uses a distributed database composed of many nodes in the network to confirm and record all transaction behaviors.
Simply put, Bitcoin is a string of complex codes generated by a computer, with a total upper limit of approximately 21 million.
Taking the 55 days between January 1 and February 24, 2021 as an example, if only the closing price of USD is calculated, there will be 27 days in which Bitcoin has risen or fallen by more than 3%, accounting for nearly half of that day. A drop of more than 10% is even more "commonplace."
At present, the price of one bitcoin is about 350,000 yuan.
At the beginning of its birth, the price of a single Bitcoin was less than 1 cent.
It is the "roller coaster" type of market that has repeatedly made Bitcoin the focus of attention.
Fei Du, who is engaged in the design industry in Shanghai, likes to be exposed to all kinds of new things. Bitcoin has aroused his great interest.
"The price of Bitcoin has skyrocketed recently. From my own point of view, it is impossible not to be uneasy. Many friends around me are eager to try this situation." Fei Du said.
In recent years, some young people have poured into the Bitcoin field, and some people have gone to "mining" in Bitcoin mines in Inner Mongolia, Gansu, and Sichuan, hoping to obtain certain Bitcoin rewards in the process, which will drive high-end graphics cards and other equipment. Panic buying.
However, most people are cautious or negative about participating in Bitcoin investment.
Liu Jianye, a Beijing citizen who is more than fifty years old, expressed his concern about Bitcoin: “The roller coaster market in the Bitcoin market is basically incomprehensible to ordinary people. The frequent fluctuations and the huge fluctuations seem to be based on luck. And this At the same time, we are also more worried about the legality of Bitcoin. The official does not recognize that it is a legal currency that can be used for payment. At best, it is just a virtual commodity. If ordinary people rush into the market, they may accidentally get in. Become the'leeks' to be cut."
Does not have the "legal status" of currency
Regarding the nature of Bitcoin, Chinese regulators have made clear judgments.
In 2013, five ministries including the People's Bank of China, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the "Notice on Preventing Bitcoin Risks", clearly stating that Bitcoin is not issued by the monetary authority, and has no monetary attributes such as legal compensation and compulsory nature. Not a real currency.
In terms of nature, Bitcoin is a specific virtual commodity, which does not have the same legal status as currency, and cannot and should not be used as currency in the market.
However, as a kind of commodity buying and selling behavior on the Internet, the bitcoin transaction, ordinary residents have the freedom to participate under the premise of their own risk.
The regulatory authority also made it clear that from the perspective of Bitcoin being a specific virtual commodity, there may be a higher risk of speculation, a higher risk of money laundering, and the risk of being used by criminals or organizations.
In 2017, the Announcement on Preventing Token Issuance Financing Risks from the People’s Bank of China and other seven departments once again emphasized that any so-called token financing trading platform shall not engage in the exchange business between legal currency and tokens and “virtual currencies”. It is not allowed to buy or sell tokens or "virtual currency" as a central counterparty, nor provide services such as pricing or information intermediary for tokens or "virtual currency".
The qualitative and opinions of the regulatory authorities can be regarded as an important basis for judging the "investment value" of Bitcoin.
Zhao Qian, who works in education in Guangzhou, believes that the so-called "Bitcoin financial management" and "Bitcoin investment" are games of speculators, and ordinary people should not get involved.
"Recently, Bitcoin broke through $60,000 and hit the so-called'highest price in history'. It feels like those dealers made speculations, just to create a frenetic atmosphere, and then find a'taker' to enter the market. It is very 17th century. The smell of Dutch'tulip bubbles'."
Ms. Jia, who has worked in a financial company in Hangzhou for many years, said that she would not participate in Bitcoin, on the one hand because she did not understand the security of this virtual product, on the other hand, she also believed that it was excessively endowed with "high valuation" and "high expectations." "There will be huge potential investment risks.
"Although Bitcoin itself has a clear upper limit, the supply of various types of'virtual currencies' under similar algorithm rules may be unlimited. Today, bitcoins may come out, and tomorrow they may come out again. Risks cannot be prevented." she says.
According to Zhang Wen, a precious metals analyst at CITIC Futures, the biggest advantage of Bitcoin is that it saves currency storage costs and reduces transaction costs, but its disadvantages of lack of national sovereign credit endorsement and historical accumulation are very obvious.
This is different from other investment products such as precious metals. For example, gold has been traded between banks for hundreds of years and has been used as the last settlement method of the International Monetary Fund with strong stability.
Many experts called for perfecting supervision in light of the new situation of Bitcoin and solving the current problems of insufficient supervision and lagging supervision.
Investors should not blindly follow suit
It is worth noting that as the price of Bitcoin continues to rise, there are more and more voices at home and abroad calling for vigilance against risks.
Gabriel Markroff, a member of the European Central Bank Management Committee, said that Bitcoin investors need to be prepared to "lose all their funds."
CMC market analyst David Madden believes that although Bitcoin is currently strong, it is still a very unstable asset.
According to Dong Dengxin, director of the Institute of Financial Securities at Wuhan University of Science and Technology, the current Bitcoin market has entered a stage of irrational and blind gambling.
Dong Dengxin believes that the higher the position, the more people's attention may be attracted, and investors who do more may be more confident.
Once blindly going long fails, the loss will be very serious.
"Bitcoin has neither the credit of national sovereignty nor the status of legal tender, and the application prospects are very uncertain. At the same time, we must also see that the current central banks are promoting the digitization of their national currencies, so the future of Bitcoin is legal The probability of use is very small.” Dong Dengxin said that Bitcoin as a new thing has its technical content to a certain extent.
However, there are still great risks in using it as an investment application. It is recommended that ordinary people without relevant professional knowledge do not blindly follow the trend to "bo stupid" and "beat the drum to spread flowers."
In an interview with our reporter, Wan Zhe, a researcher at the “Belt and Road” College of Beijing Normal University, said that we must take a calm look at Bitcoin.
From a macro point of view, the sharp increase in the price of Bitcoin is inseparable from the loose monetary policies adopted by many major economies in the world; from a micro point of view, Bitcoin, as a representative of the so-called "digital encrypted currency", still has a great development and application. The uncertainty is not currency in the true sense.
"Although Bitcoin is a special commodity, its birth and development have a certain special significance, but it is still a commodity in essence. Ordinary people who use it as an investment target are faced with huge risks. Therefore, in the face of skyrocketing The'wealth effect' brought about by the plunge should not be a fluke mentality." Wan Zhe said.
Many people in the industry said that if Bitcoin is used as an investment product or financial product, it is necessary to pay close attention to the relevant laws, regulations and policies of various countries.
Because changes in external factors such as the regulatory environment will directly affect the price trend of Bitcoin.
In addition, relevant parties have also reminded investors to prevent some criminals from using Bitcoin to defraud or raise funds illegally, and do not blindly believe in the promises of wild flowers. They should establish correct investment concepts and effectively increase risk awareness.
Wang Junling