Since 2009 when Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin, the crypto niche has exploded and clocked over 1,600 coins by September 2018. The tokens are new investments promising high returns on investment (ROI) to people who make the right decisions.

Take the case of Bitcoin. Around 2009, Bitcoin’s value was less than $1. This value grew by 1,873,660% to hit $18,737.6 for one BTC by the close of 2017. Impressive!

Other coins that yielded remarkable ROI over time include Bitcoin Cash, Ripple, and Monero. Though many coins have been on a bearish (downward) trend in 2018, this trend is expected to change to a bullish one.

As more coins enter the industry, investors are finding it a challenge to select the best coins. This post is a guide to help you invest in the right coins today by seeking answers to questions such as “Should you go short or long-term with cryptos?” and “What are the best cryptocurrencies to invest in today?”

A Closer Look at Cryptocurrency Investing

The same way people make decisions to invest in bonds, gold, or real estate, venturing into the cryptos cannot be rushed or coerced. Once you make a decision, you are responsible for the associated profits or losses that come with such coins.

Does this mean that one cannot make the right investment decision without using expert services? No! The target is ensuring you get the right information and apply it in the correct context. You need to gather the right information and make the right decisions.

Indeed, this is the point where you should focus on others to make the right decision. You need to draw the right personal investment objectives, talk to the right people including experts, and set off on a journey to achieve the goals you want to achieve. To help you get started, here is a set of questions that you need to answer:

• How much do you have for investing?
• How much should you invest in cryptocurrencies?
• Do you want to sell the coins at once or gradually?
• What quantities of profits do you want from cryptocurrencies?
• How fast do you want to enjoy the profits?  

Investing in Cryptos: Do You Go Short Term or Long Term?

Investing in cryptocurrencies closely resembles conventional assets such as shares or bonds in the market today. You can opt to purchase and sell immediately or hold for a long time to optimize profits. Though you are free to take on your preferred investment approach, long-term targeting is considered more viable.

If you take a look at most cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, their prices took years before hitting peaks in 2017 and early 2018. However, there are others that also deliver high returns on investment (ROI) within a short time.

For example, some tokens released through ICOs (initial coin offerings) experience almost immediate growth after they are released into the market. Therefore, some investors might opt to sell the coins immediately and move on to the next ones. Here are some factors to consider when deciding to go long-term or short-term with cryptocurrency investing:

Investing in the Long Term

• Consider going for long-term cryptocurrency investing if you have idle funds that will not be engaged for a long time. Here, you will need to juggle between putting the money in a bank to earn interest or investing in cryptocurrencies and waiting to see their value grow.
• If you think the startup associated with the coin of choice is strong enough and likely to grow over time, go ahead and invest in the supported token. For example, a company such as Ripple Labs inspires confidence in XRP coin.
• If you have evidence that the coin is likely to grow in the long-term, go ahead and buy the coins.

Investing in the Short Term  

• If a new token has been launched through an ICO, this is a good opportunity to invest and aim to sell within a short time when the price rises.
• If the selected cryptocurrency has low market capitalization, it is advisable to go short term.

Knowing the best cryptocurrency to invest in 2018 can be an uphill task especially if you are not updated on the industry performance. This is a major problem faced by new crypto enthusiasts. Here, you cannot make decisions based on emotions.

Some factors to consider include the price performance, the underlying project, personalities steering the project, and ability to address the current issues such as scalability in the industry. If you are looking forward to joining the crypto industry, consider picking the best cryptocurrency to invest in from the following list.

Ripple (XRP)

Ripple is one of the top cryptos in the market today. It was created in 2012 by Ripple Labs and is targeted at supporting secure, instant, and near free global financial transactions. In 2017, investors in Ripple enjoyed high returns as the price of XRP shot from $0.006 in March 2017 to $3.65 in early January  2018.

Though the price has been on a negative trend between January and September 2018, people in Ripple should not discard its native coins. The bearish trend that has affected most cryptocurrencies, including BTC, ETH, and XRP is likely to change at some point and start delivering returns on investments.

If you take a closer look at Ripple, it had a market capitalization of $17 million by the close of October 2018 and is ranked position three on CoinMarketCap. This is a demonstration of the huge potential associated with the coin.

Ripple’s competitive advantage hails from the fact that it is not just a crypto coin for sending value the way Bitcoin or Litecoin operates. Rather, it is also a means of making payment. This implies that users can complete payments in record time as other networks such as Ethereum and Bitcoin grapple with issues of scalability.

Another thing that makes Ripple a high potential investment option is that large financial institutions such as JP Morgan, Saudi Arabia Central Bank, American Express, and China LianLian International are already using the system. If such high profile enterprises have confidence in Ripple, you should also not wait to invest in it.

Ethereum (ETH)

Cryptocurrencies are in many ways like the pioneering industries of the yesteryears where frontrunners emerge and are followed by others in the pack. Over time, those that made an early debut have an added advantage of winning trust from the community. This is the situation that makes Ethereum enter the list of the top cryptocurrency to invest in 2018 and 2019.

If you check the performance of Ethereum in 2017, its price shot up by approximately 3000%. Even with the bearish trend experienced in 2018, Ethereum is staying firmly in the second position with a market capitalization of $20 billion by the close of October 2018.   

Like Ripple, Ethereum’s value is not only drawn from its native coin, ETH. Rather, investors look at Ethereum as an ecosystem that holds the potential to guide the blockchain industry to the next level.

By acting as a platform for creating decentralized apps and being positioned as a reliable launch pad for ICOs and new tokens, Ethereum is expected to keep growing from one level to another. Besides, it is led by some of the top minds in the industry such as Vitalik Buterin who inspire confidence in the network.

Bitcoin (BTC)

Bitcoin is the pioneer of the cryptocurrency niche that has maintained a lead in all areas since its inception in 2009. Between its debut and the close of 2017, early investors raked about 1,873,660% returns on their investment. Though the top price that almost hit $19,000 took a downward trend and culminated to $6,272.00 in September 2018, you cannot simply dismiss Bitcoin as a top investment.

• Bitcoin is a truly decentralized coin where no single party controls it the way it happens with others coins such as Ethereum that are run through foundations.
• Bitcoin is one of the most accepted coins in organizations and stores for payment. Different jurisdictions such as the State of Arizona are now supporting payment of taxes in Bitcoin.
• Bitcoin is looked to as a guide that determines the direction of other coins in the market. Therefore, it is expected to remain an important force that will help to define the industry in the coming years. This is the reason why cybercriminals have been targeting Bitcoin in attacks such as the Mt. Gox Hack and YouBit theft that saw the organizations file for bankruptcy.

Zcash (ZEC)

Zcash is one of the new coins that entered the market in 2016. Despite the short stint, the coin had managed to reach a market cap of $595.3 million by the close of October 2018.

Though its current value represents a major drop from the starting point, it is still one of the best cryptocurrencies to invest in because of the following considerations:

• The coin is carefully designed to deliver optimal privacy to holders. This attribute makes it more appealing especially now that countries are contemplating regulating cryptocurrencies.
• The coin is led by some of the top minds in the blockchain industry. The founder, Zooko Wilcox-O’Hearn, worked closely with scientists in leading universities such as John Hopkins, MIT, Technion, UC Berkeley, and Tel Aviv University to make the coin a leader in the market. This cooperation is expected to increase the value of the coin in the coming years.

Cardano (ADA)

When you take a closer look at Cardano, the only tag that can be associated with it is the best cryptocurrency in the niche today. Though the coin only entered the market in 2017, it had grown by 5600% to reach $1.15 by early January  2018.

The coin is a potential option because it consolidates the best technologies in the niche. It was created as the next generation cryptocurrency to address current issues such as scalability, anonymity, and cross-chain interoperability. Other factors that make ADA a great investment option include:

• The coin is based on scientific research, which implies that its ideas will be pretested by a wide range of experts before implementation.
• The project is led by some of the top minds in the blockchain industry, including Charles Hoskinson and Jeremy Woods.
• Cardano boasts of unique features in the industry such as the Ourboros consensus that help to optimize the network’s performance.
• Cardano is likely to grow because its native platform also supports other cryptos to facilitate cross-chain transactions through its proof of work protocol. This implies that a user in one network such as Bitcoin will be able to send value directly to another network such as Ethereum without using a centralized exchange.

Dash (DASH)

One thing that investors in the blockchain niche need to appreciate is that the coins that will grow into industry leaders are those that more people can associate with. Dash made it onto the list of the top coins to invest in because it managed to address the scalability issue through its InstanSend feature.

The Dash design has won a lot of interest from the community and raised it to position 12 on the CoinMarketCap at a price of $151.99 by the close of October 2018. The design of the coin that aims at promoting progressive development is expected to keep the value increasing in the coming years and deliver high ROI.

Neo (NEO)

Two names that regularly come up in the blockchain when crypto-related innovation is mentioned are Da Hongfei and Vitalik Buterin. The later created Ethereum while the former created NEO.

NEO technology stands out in the industry because it uses the Delegated Byzantine Fault Tolerant system that improves on proof of stake (PoS) consensus algorithm. The technology has helped to address issues commonly associated with the proof of work (PoW) and proof of stake (PoS) models such as centralized mining, poor scalability, and high power requirement for mining.

By the close of October, the market capitalization of NEO was $961.4 million at a price of $15.38. Though it has been on a downward trend starting from January, the trend is likely to change and take an upward trend in the coming years.

Steemit (STEEM)

The blockchain technology has been growing steadily to reach all areas of the economy. Bitcoin started with a target on the financial transactions. Now, other startups are targeted at other niches to optimize the uptake of blockchain technology. Steemit is a blockchain platform designed for the social media industry.

Its native token, STEEM, is a social media coin designed to help promote the publishing and consumption of high-quality content. The token was designed to motivate those who create high-quality content for Steemit and others who discover it. It is also used for sending value, like other coins, in the industry.

Because of the centrality of social media in society today, STEEM coins’ value is likely to keep growing in the coming years. Steemit’s value also comes from the fact that it also features a stable coin referred to as Steem Dollar. The coin is a great option for people who want to store their funds without worrying of high volatility.  

The market capitalization on October 30, 2018, was $219.8 million at a price of $0.77 per STEEM according to CoinMarketCap.

The Final Take

When you set off looking for the answer to the question, “What is the best cryptocurrency to invest in?”, the target should be getting the bigger picture of the industry and then narrowing it down to the preferred coins. Here, you need to be analytical of the coins’ performance and factor in expert advice before selecting the preferred option.

Even with the right advice, it is also crucial to follow the best practices of operating in the industry that include the following:

• Make sure to only invest what you have. This implies that you should not go borrowing to invest in cryptos because the risk of loss still looms.
• Only invest the amount that you can afford to lose. Like in gambling, it is advisable to only commit funds that will not hurt your life in the case of a loss. For example, budget the funds to invest in cryptos as opposed to using cash meant for rent or medical fees.
• Do not simply put all the funds in one crypto. Even if a specific coin is impressive, consider spreading the investment to different tokens to spread the risk.
• Employ the best strategies to store the tokens of choice to reduce the risk of loss. When cases of attacks such as those at YouBit and Coincheck are reported, it implies that investors incurred huge losses. Therefore, you need to use the best tricks to protect your investment.

Some of the tricks include ensuring that the tokens are kept in cold storage, withdrawing the coins from exchanges when not trading them, and keeping your private keys secured from third parties.

Whether you have been in the cryptocurrency niche for some time or you are a newbie, you need to always stay on top of the industry news. This is important because emerging events can help you make millions in no time or incur huge losses.

For example, when cryptocurrencies announce partnerships, the value of their coins goes up. You should consider selling the coins when such partnerships are effected. Besides, avoid getting fixated to a specific coin because newer tokens are introducing impressive technologies that could see them grow rapidly in the future.