Bitcoin soaring - but experts warn: "High-risk speculative object"

Anyone who invests in Bitcoin should have strong nerves.

After the all-time high in 2017, the cryptocurrency has recently climbed to new records.

But experts warn of these risks.

Those who

invest

in

should better have strong nerves.

After the all-time high in 2017, the

climbed

to new records these days.

On Tuesday (December 1),

reached

a record high of 19,918 dollars on the “Bitstamp” trading platform, as reported by the German Press Agency (dpa).

In the early afternoon, the rate fell to $ 18,100.

Read here:

The value of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin has increased significantly

The day before, the

even

three-year-

and

, as Tagesschau.de wrote (as of December 1, 2020).

At that time, a high of 19,666 dollars was marked on the trading platform "Bitstamp".

However, it should be noted that there are numerous platforms, so that the respective record levels differ slightly from each other.

All platforms, as reported Tageschau.de, have one thing in common, however, "that they have been showing a strong increase in Bitcoin since October".

Since the beginning of this month, when a Bitcoin was still available for just over $ 10,000, the price has almost doubled.

Read here

: How do I buy and sell Bitcoin?

Bitcoin proponents give reasons for hope for more stability

Bitcoin proponents

cite, as the dpa report on the subject says, solid reasons for their

.

A few weeks ago, the large payment service PayPal granted a kind of accolade by announcing payment with Bitcoin and Co., as the news agency writes.

It is also stated that professional investors such as asset managers are increasingly interested in crypto currencies, which makes short-term price capers at least less likely.

Read here

Consumer advocates on cryptocurrencies: "High-risk speculative object"

However, as the dpa report also says, the latest price move should rather

confirm

the

advocates who see crypto currencies

.

"Crypto currencies are subject to strong price fluctuations," warned the report, according to the consumer center in Hamburg recently.

Their value depends solely on demand.

"If demand collapses, the currency also loses value."

According to the dpa, consumer advocates point out that

do not

any additional interest.

“Another disadvantage: the market for cryptocurrencies is not regulated by a financial regulator.

There are no state security systems. "

In the long-term valuation of Bitcoin, as the report also says, the fact that the

as a finite resource and thus a basically scarce good

plays a decisive role

.

Compared to trading in other scarce assets such as gold

, Bitcoin is a comparatively small project, according to another aspect.

Against this background, according to the dpa report, experts such as the Frankfurt economist Philipp Sandner would point out that the Bitcoin market has relatively little liquidity - that is also a reason for the high volatility.

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Critic: cryptocurrency has been extremely volatile in the past

The

, as the dpa report also says, is threatened by possible state regulation.

If economic areas such as the People's Republic of China, the United States or the European Union were to strictly regulate or even prohibit trading in Bitcoin, the exchange rate with the classic currencies could collapse accordingly.

In addition, Bitcoin is in competition with other crypto currencies such as Ethereum or Ripple's XRP, which could also be "mined" with significantly less power consumption.

Cryptocurrencies

are not for the faint of heart, say experts.

, writes Tagesschau.de.

An investment is therefore associated with

.

According to the news portal, critics therefore complain that the high price fluctuations stand in the way of use as a means of payment and investment.

They would see digital currencies as purely an object of speculation, not a real alternative when it comes to investing.

Sources: dpa, Tagesschau.de

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