Since Bitcoin was launched in 2009, it has become a hotter investment than ever, and if you remember, this digital currency was worth just pennies when it started, then all of a sudden, it shot up in value making earlier investors instant millionaires. But Bitcoin is not the only Cryptocurrency that experienced an increase in value. Ethereum, Stellar, Ripple and VeChain also saw a significant price rise.

Despite the increase in value of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, many people have compared this investment to gambling. For example, Warren Buffet is a famous investor who doesn’t put Bitcoin in the same category as stocks. Instead, Buffet believes there are many reasons why investing in Cryptocurrency can be compared to gambling.

In this post, we will discuss why playing casino games may be better than investing in Cryptocurrency.

Cryptocurrency has no rules and regulations.

Regular currencies like the US dollar, Euro and pound are regulated by government policies. This makes people feel safe with money. On the other side, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies don’t have the same backing, as they are not subject to any or only little regulation. As a result, cryptocurrencies suffer some problems.

Decentralization is Cryptocurrency’s strength but is also one of its weaknesses. Satoshi Nakamoto launched Bitcoin in the aftermath of the 2008 economic crisis in America. He intended to introduce a global currency that any government or bank could not control. Today, Bitcoin still lives up to this vision. However, where the government is not involved, problems may arise.

Some individuals prefer a lack of government or bank involvement. They say to themselves, “Is it the banks that caused the 2008 economic crisis before the US government bailed them out?”. But some people don’t feel safe dealing with unregulated currencies. If someone steals their money, there will be no recourse. Cryptocurrency can, in many ways, be compared to modern online gambling, where you place a bet with no guarantee of getting back your investment. But there is a significant difference between gambling and Cryptocurrency. One is regulated, and the other is not fully regulated. Gamblers can bet comfortably in a regulated online casino. If there was a significant dispute in gambling at an online casino in Canada and UK, for example, say a player is not paid his winnings, the gambling commissions will swing into action to help solve the problem. There is nothing much you can do in Cryptocurrency once your currency disappears.

Lack of regulation makes cryptocurrency markets subject to manipulation and many other problems you are unlikely to experience at the stock markets, for instance. One problem with Crypto is giant whales buying and selling similar Crypto from themselves to cause a false trading volume, the pump and dump scheme. Other investors then purchase the asset, thinking that the asset is in demand. Gambling is not subject to this kind of manipulation. Instead, most trusted licensed online gaming operators have a third-party firm to test and prove that they offer fair and random games, and the gambling commissions have strict rules the online casinos must follow.

Is Cryptocurrency more volatile than gambling?

The level to which short-term results defer with statistical averages is known as volatility. For example, casino games such as video poker and slots cannot compete with Bitcoin volatility. The fluctuation in Bitcoin is just too high. 

Most cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, have never been stable. You can tell that by the current drop in Bitcoin price. Most people have lost money buying Cryptocurrency, and the future is unpredictable. A common similarity between Cryptocurrency and gambling is that you don’t know what will happen. Some Bitcoin investors think they can predict the future, but in reality, this is not easy.

In gambling, you can use odds and software and past events to predict which team will win a football match. For example, if you know a lot about a football team and players, like who is playing and who is not, you can succeed in betting on football matches. However, we can only speculate what will happen when it comes to Bitcoin. Even previous statistics may not be reliable enough to tell what will happen.

Investing in Bitcoin is not like investing in a standard company

Cryptocurrency and the stock market have one similarity. You can invest in both to make a profit. But the investment process is quite different in both. Bitcoin, for example, differs from traditional stock, which is why the general population is yet to accept cryptocurrencies as they do stock investments.

The same can be said about Crypto and gambling. Many people have accepted casino games but still doubt digital coins. To invest in Bitcoin, you will need a fiat currency, so one currency is buying another. On the other hand, when buying stocks, you only need to visit a single exchange site like Robinhood and use the standard currency to purchase stock.

In online gambling, you only need to visit the payment area to deposit money using the method available in the banking section. Physical casinos also have payment counters where you can go and deposit your stake. This is much easier to do than using one currency to buy another, as it happens in Bitcoin investment, for example.

Another setback in cryptocurrency investment is that you cannot do as much trusted research before investing. However, in stocks, you can find a lot of information about a company like Amazon; for example, you can see their performance history, future projections, etc. In Crypto, you won’t be able to find much information, and what you find may not have any accurate backing. I am not ruling out that cryptocurrencies can’t be researched; sometimes, you can look at the team behind the cryptocurrency project to see their vision and goals and what they have done before. However, looking at Luna, we see that even the best can fail. Like others I do believe Luna Classic will go back up again. What you can’t do is find revenues and balance sheets, as most cryptocurrencies hardly provide this kind of information to their investors.

Cryptocurrencies are only good at discussing their future rather than the profits and losses they have made. The profits and losses of a company are crucial information that investors need to make an investment decision. If you are wondering why most people still doubt cryptocurrency investment, it is because of insufficient data. It may not be a fair thing to say, but most people who invest in Cryptocurrency do a fair amount of guesswork.

Unlike gambling, Cryptocurrency has not been around long enough. Digital coins like Bitcoin are not even ten years old. Our point is this make it hard to have significant confidence in the future of the crypto market. Cryptocurrency may not get bigger as it is now, especially if it is not widely accepted in the future. However, to be fair, some places online already accepted Bitcoin as a form of payment, but it is still hard to find stores where you can buy a loaf of bread with Bitcoin.

Now, it looks like most companies will accept Cryptocurrency in the future, but again no one knows what will happen.

Unlike Crypto, online gambling is an established industry that banks and governments widely accept. So, it is easy to see where the industry is headed or where it will be in the next few years. The good thing is you can find information about casino games, research house edges and decide quickly. When you place a bet, you’ll do so based on facts and information about the games. However, the house always wins in the long run, don’t forget that when playing. Again, in Crypto, your investment will be based more on some guesswork and hope for better things to come.

Thoughts and takeaway

Most crypto fans still believe Bitcoin is a better investment than gambling. However, in this post, we have presented you with why buying cryptocurrency can be just as risky or even riskier than gambling.

We are not just bashing Crypto; instead, we are using facts, such as Cryptocurrency is not regulated, so it is not as safe to invest in it. Licensed gambling sites are safe because they are regulated. However, Cryptocurrency is also volatile and is yet to be accepted by most investors. Most people already know about gambling and that they can sometimes win big, and they have taken it as a legitimate way of losing money in the long run. However, online gambling may have a bad name, but if we look at facts on the ground, we’ll realize that Crypto is, in many ways, just as risky.

Most people who bought Bitcoin early in 2010 earned huge profits. We learnt from this that when it comes to Crypto investment, you have to hold onto it and believe that your investment will pay off. Very few people can do that cause of the enormous swings in Crypto.

With all the above being said, I am a gambler. I play at online casinos such as Vegasparadise, Riverbelle. I sometimes win big and sometimes lose big. I also invest in Cryptocurrency, and what I have learned with Crypto is NEVER leverage; as time has shown, 99% who leverage end up losing. So, buy the real thing and hold, that’s what I do now, and I will wait and see if lady luck is with me at the casino tables or with my crypto coins.

Source: Plato Data Intelligence: PlatoData.io