Jim Breyer is a billionaire investor and warns about a ‘Nuclear Crypto Winter’. He stated this during Fortune’s 2018 Global Tech Forum, in Guangzhou, China.

Cryptocurrency Winter

It is no secret that 2018 is a rough year for cryptocurrencies and the market has, to say the least, fallen a lot. The market capitalisation found a market high of $800 billion in January of 2018. However, it now hovers around the $120 billion marks.

The exploding market during 2017 contributed to many investors entering the market. While many entered during the hype, 2018 has left the investors questioning if the market will recover at all. During the conference, Breyer said that there are times when investors souls get tested. He warned that we are close to a nuclear cryptocurrency winter right now.

However, it is not the first time these boom and bust cycles occur. We had AI winters which are periodic slumps in artificial intelligence excitement. The dot-com bubble was another example when the market came crashing down. Breyer still invested in Facebook in 2005 the value where under one dollar. Today, Facebook turned out to be a significant investment He adds:

“These cycles keep happening every decade or so, this seasonality is inevitable,” Breyer said, referring to the repetition of technologic booms-and-busts.

Will the cryptocurrency winter end?

Jim Breyer is highly bullish on blockchain and cryptocurrencies. He thinks the market will recover for many reasons. His experience speaks for itself but meeting some of the brightest students, entrepreneurs and technologists in the world inspired his faith. They have so much fundamental interest in the blockchain, its use cases in our society, and are working on many different projects.

“So many of the very best computer scientists and deep learning PhD students and post-docs are working on blockchain because they have so much fundamental interest in what blockchain can mean… You don’t want to bet against the best and brightest in the world.”

Many major institutions are also entering the market which is a positive sign. ICE will launch Bakkt in January next year in collaboration with Microsoft and Starbucks. Fidelity, one of the worlds largest financial services provider, will open up for cryptocurrency trading. Most recent news states that Calastone Investment network will put all mutual fund trades on the blockchain. The company provides financial services for over 1,700 companies, including JP Morgan and Invesco.

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