Trading has always been an enticing activity. Throughout the twentieth century, trading of stocks and shares was the playground of the super-rich, something that lay far beyond the reach of the masses.
As time went on, it became easier for people to get involved in trading, but the industry was still associated with elitism and exclusivity. For most of us, making it big on the stock market was nothing more than a dream, because you need access to information and algorithms to make it big.
Then, the millennium passed and the internet began to gain traction. In 2009, Bitcoin - the world’s first cryptocurrency - came into being, and trading changed forever.
Nowadays, cryptocurrency trading has become one of the easiest and most profitable ways for relatively ordinary people to make huge returns on their money in a tiny space of time. It’s a new era of trading, where all you need to get started is a bit of spare cash and an internet connection.
The growth of crypto has brought hope to millions of would-be traders, and its popularity is only growing. The number of monthly users of Coinbase (one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges) is rising all the time and stood at 4.3 million in December 2017.
Sounds very easy, right?
The truth is that in spite of its progress, crypto trading is still a tough field to succeed in for non-wealthy beginners. Nowadays, there is too much scams, misinformation and abundance of projects to choose from, so one needs to be able to vet them carefully. Not to mention, because the market moves too fast, emotions come into play.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are companies looking to make it easier for everyone to get involved in crypto trading. First though, they need to overcome a few barriers.
So why is crypto trading hard to get into?
The simple answer is, it isn’t. Anyone can sign up to a coin exchange, set up a wallet, and buy a bunch of Bitcoins, or Ether, or any other coin. They can do it right now, if they want. Then they can sell those coins five minutes or five months down the line for (hopefully) a healthy profit.
Unfortunately, successful long-term trading is about more than just buying and selling assets. Algorithms are a massively important aspect of trading today, and are widely used in traditional finance and crypto alike.
Algorithms and automated trading strategies allow users to automate trading decisions, so stocks or coins are sold automatically when the price dips below a certain level. You can choose how much to sell or buy at a certain point or date.
This is especially important in crypto, as the market is 24/7 unlike the traditional stocks world. Big dips or surges can happen in a terrifyingly short space of time, making it vital to monitor constantly. Unfortunately, humans can’t do this, so a huge trading advantage goes to those with solid algorithms managing their trading.
Algorithms also help avoid human error. People tend to make emotional decisions more often than is good for us, and when trading large amounts of value this kind of irrationality can result in big losses.
This is all fine, if you can afford to pay someone to craft an algorithm for you, or if you’re a skilled coder. If you’re neither of those things, you’re out of luck. That helps make the crypto market - formerly a bastion of equality and accessibility - restricted to coders and those who can afford to buy their services.
Luckily enough, one company has thought of a way to make crypto trading more efficient and easy.
How Capitalise is changing the game
A company called Capitalise have created a platform which will allow ordinary people, not tech geniuses or the super wealthy, to break into crypto trading. The way it works is simple.
Users of the platform can type trading instructions in plain English instead of complex code, and the system will compile a working bot that executes their trading strategy fully automatically. Users can set the conditions when to buy, sell, or hold coins, and set criteria for when to do those things (for example, sell if Bitcoin’s value drops below a certain threshold). And much more.
In the future, Capitalise will also allow its users to sell their algorithms and trading strategies to others. If you build something that works, why not share it with others in the community and make money from it? It encourages mutual support, helps build a strong network of crypto enthusiasts, and gives people an incentive to take part.
This has the potentially to redefine the way crypto trading works. For those who have been put off from entering this highly promising market, Cryptocurrencies might well be enough to prompt some reconsideration.
