Getty Bitcoin could reach $50,000 this year, an expert has predicted

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Jeet Singh, a cryptocurrency portfolio manager for the last six years, says it is common for virtual currencies to fluctuate by 70 or 80 percent. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, he compared cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and Ripple to early tech giants like Microsoft. He said: "If you look at Microsoft or Apple, when they went public their stocks were very volatile because the market wasn’t mature." The volatility of the market may have worried newer cryptocurrency traders, but long-time investors are less concerned, as they are used to some fluctuations, Mr Singh explained.

As the market for bitcoin becomes more mainstream, and traders begin to better understand cryptocurrencies, some of this volatility is likely to calm down. Mr Singh predicts: "Bitcoin could definitely see $50,000 in 2018." However, he added: "We will probably go through a suffering period of volatility" around the time of Bitcoin’s next $10,000 landmark. Bitcoin’s volatility has led traditional financial experts to slam the investment, claiming it is a "bubble" doomed to crash and burn.

Bank of Canada boss Stephen Poloz claimed crypto would never be used as a real currency, branding it a form of "gambling" rather than a legitimate investment. Delivering a stark warning to investors, he said: "A lot of words have been used but I think the main thing is, buyers should be aware it is much closer to gambling than investing." He claimed cryptocurrencies have no intrinsic value and would not be seen as "assets" in the same strain as other investments. Mr Poloz said: "They are not assets, really, for the most part. I suppose they are securities, technically.

Cryptocurrency price: A year in charts Mon, March 12, 2018 Compare crypto currencies (Ripple, Bitcoin, Ethereum, LiteCoin) on value, market cap and supply for the past year Play slideshow coindesk.com 1 of 10 LiteCoin is going down with the market dip