Cryptocurrencies are a facsinating subject. There are smart people convinced that it's the next Big Thing and will have a similar impact to the Internet, while others see it as a scam. This report will give a broad overview of cryptocurrencies, and some of the most interesting applications. Then, we will look at some of the stocks and ETFs to gain exposure: GreyScale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), GreyScale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF (BLOK), Coinbase (COIN), Paypal (PYPL), Square (SQ), and Riot Blockchain (NASDAQ:RIOT).The rise of cryptocurrencies has been nothing short of remarkable. Since Bitcoin was launched in 2009, more than 4,000 other cryptocurrencies have been created. The current total market cap is presently over $1.5 trillion and as of February of this year it’s estimated more than 100 million people are using cryptocurrencies around the world.
While there are many doubters that view cryptocurrencies as nothing more than a scam, others see blockchain technology, the technology that enables the existence of cryptocurrencies, as revolutionary. Their belief is that this technology will disrupt and disintermediate money, banking, and finance in the same way that the Internet has done to information. At the moment, most cryptocurrencies have few applications beyond speculation. As a result, most of its massive gains are due to a combination of people getting excited about the technology’s future potential, while others are simply chasing returns. However, some interesting developments are happening on the margins with more practical applications for cryptocurrencies such as NFTs, decentralized finance (Defi), social tokens, and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAO).
In this report, we will provide a broad overview of cryptocurrencies, examine various use cases, and provide more analysis on companies and ETFs that provide exposure to this new asset class such as the GreyScale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), GreyScale Ethereum Trust (ETHE), Amplify Transformational Data Sharing ETF (BLOK), Coinbase (COIN), Paypal (PYPL), Square (SQ), and Riot Blockchain (RIOT).