It’s all the rage and is the word on the street. Is this a flash in the pan or is the hype real? Introduced on the scene in 2008, cryptocurrency has since enjoyed strong growth and massive public approval ever since its peaks over the years (the highest being in 2021), making many people millionaires overnight. Coins like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, etc., have all been the subject of great curiosity and scrutiny, with many being fully bought into it (literally and metaphorically) and others still on the fence about their potential.
But, despite the promises of crypto pundits, cryptocurrency has not been immune to market fluctuations and world events. With a downturn of the equity market, US interest rate hike, regulatory roadblocks, and several other factors, crypto prices seem to be a rollercoaster that has taken hapless investors for a ride. So, which way does the coin flip? How secure are your existing investments? And will Bitcoin ever touch the heights it had scaled? Cryptocurrency and Bitcoin expert Carl Runefelt, popularly known on YouTube as Moon Carl with over 560K subscriber base and who has recently crossed the one million followers milestone on Twitter gives us his seasoned predictions on the business of crypto, and if he’s putting his money where his mouth is.
Firstly, let’s ask the question that seems to be on everyone’s mind – were we all too soon to bank on crypto?
We are definitely not too soon when it comes to banking on crypto. We can definitely say that we are early adopters, which is a good thing. Bitcoin is still going to dramatically increase in value in the next few years, and crypto itself as an industry has a lot of developments to make and a lot of room to grow before reaching mass adoption.
There is some panic amongst the crypto community right now with the Bitcoin price plummeting down nearly 60%, trading well off their all-time highs of around $69,000 in November 2021. What would you say to those who are heavily invested in the cryptocurrency market?
Personally, I never panic sell or panic buy. Instead, my strategy is always to accumulate crypto to average the buying dollar cost. I make sure to take all my income, salaries, and profits; everything is taken into crypto and try to be more aggressive when cryptocurrency markets are going down to accumulate more. So, buying at the dip is an excellent opportunity for the long-term.
To the layperson, the closest parallel to cryptocurrency is the stock market. But stocks are rooted in companies, and cryptocurrency isn’t. What according to you, is the fundamental difference between them?
The difference between Bitcoin and stock is that Bitcoin is money, and a stock is just a share of a company where you have to rely on a third party to deliver on promises. You have to rely upon and trust humans to defend the value of the stock. With Bitcoin, you don’t have to trust or rely on any humans. You only have to trust and rely on mathematics. Math is something that is objective and true and can never change. As long as you believe that math is trustworthy, then you can believe in Bitcoin, and that’s precisely the point of Bitcoin, to cut out third parties to trust.
Many people are attracted to the cryptocurrency market because it looks like a ‘get rich quick’ scheme. But is that a good assessment?
There is no such thing as getting rich quickly. People don’t get rich quickly. They do so but by taking risks, having patience, researching, and hiring great talent to help them navigate any field in any industry. I didn’t get rich quickly. It happened over 2 to 3 years because I have a great mindset, a huge passion for crypto, and then I also applied the law of attraction. However, there is a way to use your mindset and visualize your dream life in order to fulfill your goals.
When it comes to Bitcoin, the rule goes – “The more people sell, the less Bitcoin is worth because that’s how it works – its value is pegged to its desirability.” Do you see an inherent flaw in this mechanism? For example, if a currency has no intrinsic value and is unattached to an asset, can it ever be viable in the long term?
The problem with the dollar is that it has no intrinsic value. It is considered valuable because central banks tell us that it has value, and we are forced to use it and pay our taxes with it through the banking system. This is not a free market.
With Bitcoin, you can say that it has no intrinsic value. In my opinion, the inherent value itself is that no one controls Bitcoin, and it has a limited supply. This means it is the only currency in the world that is entirely free. Bitcoin is only derived from the free market, which makes it very unique. The only comparative would be gold. However, gold is very hard to transport, unsafe to send, and very difficult to store. Therefore, Bitcoin is superior to gold and is fundamentally very different from the dollar, which has no intrinsic value, while Bitcoin, in my opinion, does.
With NFTs and metaverse gathering recognition and traction, where do you think the future is headed for blockchain-based currencies?
I think that NFTs and the meta verse are going to play a role in the future, but I’ve been saying it for two years already. I believe that NFTs will end up in a huge bubble where people lose all their money because they overestimate the importance of specific NFT collections. Right now, we can see that exactly as I predicted, the NFT bubble is collapsing, and unfortunately, people are losing all their money. Nevertheless, I still believe in the NFT and Metaverse technology as a whole. It will play a vital role in the future of blockchain technology.
Countries have gone in polar opposite directions regarding cryptocurrency – some have made it a part of their official currency, while others are conflicted on it or have outright banned it. Given its volatility, do you think it is okay for governments to validate a financial system that could destabilize its citizens financially?
I believe that most countries are going to be forced to accept Bitcoin in the future. As the dollar collapses, people will surely look for alternatives. Unfortunately, as almost all the currencies around the world are backed up by the dollar, the only viable solution would be to go back to the gold standard or to embrace something new, which would be Bitcoin. Today we live in a digital world, and I believe we will need a digital currency, but we need a digital currency that is decentralized. This is because people are losing their confidence in governments and banks at a rapidly growing rate. So, some countries will have to be the first to make the change to Bitcoin and crypto as official currency. El Salvador was very quick, and now it’s going to be a domino effect where more and more countries follow from here on out. Someone had to be first, and now I believe we will see the whole world migrate towards Bitcoin as a national currency and then eventually a global reserve currency. I presume that this will lead to a valuation of $6 million per coin.
Carl, in your earlier interview with ASPIRE for the April 2021 edition, you said, “Centralized and withholding in character, the average working individual spends a lifetime nabbed into the clutches of the flawed banking system.”Are you still confident of the power of cryptocurrency to emancipate the average working individual? Or will the ordinary Joe forever need a safety net to withstand the vagaries of the system?
Everyone who’s using the banking system is basically a slave to the current monetary system which the banks control. Bitcoin is a perfect way to escape the current system. If you keep your money in the bank, you are immediately a victim of high inflation. If you buy Bitcoin, you escape that organized robbery. I’m not saying that purchasing Bitcoin will make everyone financially free, but it is a great way to store wealth where you don’t have to put all your trust into a third party. To create actual wealth and become financially free, you must start businesses, create cash flow, and be an entrepreneur. There is nothing that changes this fact, no matter what industry you go into. Personally, I didn’t get rich from investing in Bitcoin; I got rich from co-founding multiple companies and investing in 400 crypto start-ups. I’ve taken many risks, hired many people, and have 150 employees to date.
People don’t get rich quickly. They do so by taking risks, having patience, researching, and hiring great talent to help them navigate any field in any industry.
Do you foresee a world where one day, all traditional money will be wiped out for borderless cryptocurrency? Or is there a possibility that cryptocurrency is a fad, a socio-financial experiment that will have a disastrous outcome but eye-opening lessons? Lastly, is there a chance they will simply coexist?
I am very convinced that Bitcoin is the best form of money that the universe has ever conceived; it will dominate the world in the future. It might take 20 years, but ultimately the dollar will be worth zero and Bitcoin will be the world’s reserve currency.
Tell us one belief about cryptocurrency that has changed since you learned more about it and from its performance in the current market scenario?
There are thousands and thousands of cryptocurrencies out there, but never forget that Bitcoin is king. In a volatile market or a bear market, Bitcoin is the one cryptocurrency that holds its value best because Bitcoin is the first currency, it is the most decentralized cryptocurrency, it is the safest, and it has the highest hash rate. I don’t think that’s ever going to change. Bitcoin will always be number one. In the land of cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is the King.
Today, Bitcoin falls under the category of safe or familiar cryptocurrency. But new coins are popping up each day. Where does their potential stand in the crypto market, and can that be predicted?
In a recession or Bear market, I personally don’t have a very strong belief in altcoins. (all the cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin are collectively referred to as Altcoin or alternative coin).
I think all alt coins are much more speculative than Bitcoin, and out of all the thousands and thousands out there, perhaps only a few dozen have any true value for the world currently.
What is a more important trait for a trader – a risk capacity, substantial assets, or the right mindset?
The most important thing for a trader or an investor is mindset and knowledge. You have to research and understand what you’re doing because if you don’t do the research and you don’t understand what you’re buying or selling, then you’re just gambling.
Lastly, as a Bitcoin expert, we seek your prediction of the crypto market. For instance, how long will the dip last? Would you recommend crypto owners to buy, sell or hold?
The current market is bearish at the moment, this current dip could last for another couple of years, but this is the best opportunity for people to buy. I would keep dollar-cost averaging during the bear market, but more importantly, build businesses and create cash flow. Build while others are bleeding when there’s blood on the streets; that’s always the best opportunity to create massive wealth.
The most significant part of my wealth was not created in the bull market but was actually created in the previous bear market when I was sowing many seeds. And in the bull market, I could reap the rewards from the trees growing from those seeds. So, in the bear market, make sure to plant as many seeds as you possibly can because the roots take time to develop; they don’t happen overnight. In the bull market, people think they can just plant a seed and see the results the next day, but that is false; it’s not true. All of those people usually lose all of their money. Planting seeds takes time and patience, and I’m pretty sure it was Warren Buffet who said, “Successful investing takes time, discipline, and patience. No matter how great the talent or effort, some things just take time.”