The news is filled with cryptocurrency hacks and rug pulls virtually every day. But what about those legitimate crypto coins that have been around for a while? They’re not doing so hot either these days.
Over the weekend, bitcoin slumped below $US34,000 ($48,879) for the first time since January. In fact, it was six months ago today that bitcoin hit an all-time high of $US68,990 ($99,182). And it’s not just bitcoin. Almost every cryptocurrency has been struggling in 2022.
What if you bought your crypto on November 9, when bitcoin hit a record high and many popular media outlets seemed convinced the world’s most popular crypto was heading to $US100,000 ($143,763) or even higher very soon? We did the maths for the most popular coins, and it’s not a pretty picture, with just one exception.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of bitcoin six months ago, you have $US50.65 (around $72) of bitcoin right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of ethereum six months ago, you have $US51.74 (around $74) of ethereum right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of BNB six months ago, you have $US53.73 (around $77) of BNB right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of XRP (Ripple) six months ago, you have $US43.13 (around $62) of XRP right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of Solana six months ago, you have $US30.46 (around $44) of Solana right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of Cardano six months ago, you have $US33.82 (around $48) of Cardano right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of Terra Luna six months ago, you have $US119.49 (around $171) of Terra Luna right now.
- If you bought $US100 (around $143) of Dogecoin six months ago, you have $US40.82 (around $59) of Dogecoin right now.
Where did all of that lost money go? It was cashed out for real money by people who purchased the cryptocurrency earlier than you and sold earlier than you.
Again, there are a lot of other cryptocurrency projects out there in the world. And if you were lucky enough to find one and make money, good for you. But you’re definitely in the minority, as most retail investors lost money to cryptocurrency in 2022.
But not everyone has been suffering. The Ethereum Foundation sold 20,000 ether at a price of $US4,722.68 ($6,789.51) per ether on November 11, 2021, raking in over $US94.4 ($135.71) million. That was almost Ethereum’s all-time high, $US4,891.70 ($7,032), achieved just a couple of days earlier on November 9.
Even gamblers know you’re never going to beat the house. But that’s not going to stop people from trying.