In recent times, the crypto market has tumbled faster than a crashing rocket. Industry darling bitcoin has shelved two-thirds of its value this year and every other major cryptocurrency has followed suit. Grand predictions that digital currencies would take over the world are looking more like a distant dream. Amid soaring global inflation and worldwide supply disruptions, a general sense of pessimism pervades the climate.
The global cryptocurrency market is now worth around $1.1 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap. Compared to the all-time high of $3 trillion, it's clear there's been a massive sell-off. Triggered by the collapse of Luna, which wiped off $20 billion in an instant, and troubles with platforms like Celsius, many investors have walked away with their money.
And yet a core group of crypto diehards remain—the HODLers. They are motivated by different purposes but united by a common belief in the staying power and long-term profitability of cryptocurrencies.
"HODL" is the popular term in cryptocurrency investment circles for the buy-and-hold trading strategy. The strategy encourages investors to ignore volatility in the near term with a belief that a token will appreciate in value over a longer time frame.
Many crypto HODLers have witnessed past bear markets that lasted months and years. Confidence similarly tanked like now and many skeptics sang requiems for crypto. But they stayed calm, kept believing and managed to multiply the value of their holdings when fresh investments poured into the market.
They see similar opportunities in the current financial crisis, the worst in more than a decade, and have been advocating patience in anticipation of a long-term bullish future.
Crypto evangelists like Michael Saylor have kept playing drums of optimism despite the general doom and gloom. The MicroStrategy CEO remains a firm believer in bitcoin's current viability and future potential despite losing almost $5bn in notional value due to the market downturn.
source: https://twitter.com/saylor/status/1540307435231092736?t=1aPvcA2M0gZ5ZcyTduOPnA&s=19
While many people keep looking at the daily and weekly red graphs and start panicking, Saylor and others like him take a longterm view. "Any time horizon shorter than four years is likely to result in a great deal of frustration & uncertainty," he said.
Another big whale expressing optimism is Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador. The man who led his country to adopt bitcoin as a legal tender last year told his followers to stop fretting about the price of bitcoin and enjoy life.
source: https://twitter.com/nayibbukele/status/1538356901297143809?t=q1ve1Y7N4rKbgGbNZvdWVQ&s=19
People who choose to keep holding bitcoin in the current bust cycle can take encouragement from what happened in the past. The price of bitcoin has crashed several times only to recover completely and make new all-time highs. In November 2018 BTC fell to $5.5k, an 80% drop a year earlier. Fears it would go all the way to zero proved misplaced; BTC slowly rebounded all the way to a new ATH of $40k in early 2021.
It must be said that bitcoin isn't the only digital token with diehard fans who have vowed to stay for the long haul. Blockchain mainstays like Ethereum, Cardano, PolkaDot, and fresher entrants like Solana, Radix enjoy their own share of loyal supporters. Even meme coins like Dogecoin and Shiba Inu have dedicated user bases who will keep hold of these tokens to the bitter end.
This might prove to be a good or bad decision in the long run—nobody knows. Past performance isn't always a guarantee of future outcome. Many crypto believers hedge their bets by diversifying their investment among bitcoin, some major alts, and exciting new projects. Indeed, many analysts see the current market condition as a big opportunity to snap up tokens related to promising projects at bargain prices.
If you've decided crypto is right for you, have a big risk appetite, and a large enough time horizon, now is your time to "buy and HODL". According to Tyrone Ross, CEO of Onramp Invest, “When something goes on sale and you like it, you should buy it".
This of course brings its own question: Which cryptocurrencies should you buy and HODL? The answer depends on things including portfolio size, risk appetite, nature of the token, legal jurisdiction and other factors.
For those with deep pockets, bitcoin and Ethereum look like bargain buys right now. Retail investors may want to look at undervalued blockchain and exchange projects, especially those still at an early stage. A blockchain token like Radix or exchange token like KRRX can offer long-term value many times their current market prices once they break into the mainstream.
For those who already have plenty of crypto investments and no great need for money, HODLing seems like a decent strategy at the moment. At least there's hope of a recovery once the global economy starts Trending upward again.
Also, Western governments are set to regulate the space, meaning crypto can become somewhat sanitized of its bad reputation. This will make the sector feel safer for many people and drive up adoption. More people will flock into the space with their money, and drive up the value of the major cryptocurrencies.