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Crypto currencies: Bitcoin vs Ripple

Crypto currencies: Bitcoin vs Ripple

 2017 was the year of the Bitcoin. The virtual currency had an exceptional year, rallying from just below $1000 to a peak of just shy of $20,000. However, at the start of 2018, investors paused for breath from the original cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. With some turning their attention towards Ripple.

Ripple has overtaken Ethereum to snatch the title of second largest cryptocurrency. Unlike Bitcoin, which was created in 2008, Ripple broke onto the scene in 2012 and each coin hit a peak value of just $3.12 compared to Bitcoins current price of $16,400. Furthermore, there are 40 million Ripple coins in existence compared to Bitcoins 16 million

But the price isn’t the only difference, the two largest crypto currencies also have very different governance and ownership structures. Whilst Bitcoin is highly decentralised, owned by a community that agrees on changes, Ripple is owned by a private company. The decentralised approach of Bitcoin is some of the appeal. It means anybody is able to use it for exactly what they want, which in a way is also currently supporting the price and lends the virtual currency to speculative trading. Ripple, however, is marketed as more of an asset transfer solution for larger sums. It is considered an alternative to a SWIFT transfer and its focus is more business to business rather than peer to peer, which some say narrows its appeal for speculative trading considerably.

Bitcoin is already far more mainstream than Ripple as far as trading is concerned. Bitcoin futures contracts can be traded on the CME or CBOE exchange with the Nasdaq looking to start trading around March. This is not the case for Ripple, futures contracts do not exist and currently there is little talk of them coming soon. That is not to say they won’t, if we have learnt anything from the meteoric rise of bitcoin, it is expect the unexpected.

How can you trade bitcoin? Capable brokers are offering bitcoin to their clients. One such broker is the award winning Australian broker Vantage FX. They are an ECN broker with some of the best spreads in the industry and unrivalled execution. They offer bitcoin trading through an MT4 account. However, be warned that trading the Bitcoin is not for the faint hearted. This is a hugely volatile asset so be sure to have a firm grasp of how you will manage your risk in the trade.

 



This post first appeared on FX Instructor Forex Blog - For Traders, By Traders, please read the originial post: here

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Crypto currencies: Bitcoin vs Ripple

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