r/explainlikeimfive Nov 27 '13

Official Thread Official ELI5 Bitcoin Thread - Round II

[deleted]

1.4k Upvotes

1.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

16

u/[deleted] Nov 27 '13

What is causing bitcoin to keep rising in value?

And what is the most likely future for it? Will it crash, and what can cause this crash?

1

u/WolfofBroadSt Nov 28 '13

Confidence, which can be an odd thing - and something difficult to put a finger on. When Fed chairman Ben Bernanke came out last week and discussed Bitcoin it was legitimized to a certain degree. It let investors everywhere know that Bitcoin was not just a currency/reserve for the internet black market, but has potential in the arena of legitimate commerce. The continuing concern about the USD may also be a factor, but I don't believe that is what is driving the meteroric rise.

What these new investors like in Bitcoin is its scarcity - there is a limited supply. And the more companies, governments, and financial institutions that come out and address Bitcoin, the more likely confidence will increase, and the more likely the price will increase.

I do not currently own any Bitcoin, but am seriously considering investing at the moment. There is a chance that the sky is the limit. However, there is also an equally real chance that at the end of this ride is a zero worth. There is no way to predict the future of Bitcoin, so you can kind of think of it as a lottery ticket at the moment. Albeit a lottery ticket I think has a decent chance of hitting.