It’s hard to believe that digital currency was once considered a fringe commodity. With the total market capital value of altcoins currently exceeding $500,000,000, it is apparent that cryptocurrencies of all stripes are here to stay. With both wealthy private individuals and hedge fund managers finally taking the plunge to invest in digital currency, it will only be a matter of time before more mainstream financial institutions like banks, building societies, and exchanges, start to get in on the act.Despite concerns that the late 2017 spike in the value of Bitcoin heralded the bursting of the cryptocurrency bubble, experts now predict that nothing so drastic is likely to occur. They feel that a drop in the value of Bitcoin and its counterparts is to be expected throughout 2018, with a concurrent rise in the sheer number of investors. Given the unique method of altcoin generation (that is, cryptocurrency mining, where new coins are digitally minted to prompt natural and realistic growth) this means that, although the sector will see a fall in the per-coin value of the currencies concerned, the overall market value will be increased. Indeed, many are predicting the value of cryptocurrency as a sector could double within the next twelve months, resulting in a sustainable market cap that exceeds $1 trillion. While much of that growth will be attributable to the major digital currencies on the market – Bitcoin, Ethereum , Ripple, Litecoin, NEO, and EOS – as blockchain technology grows and develops into new sectors and new applications, dozens of new altcoins are likely to spring up in 2018. There is no reason why any one of them should not become the Next Big Thing in cryptocurrency, benefiting from the stratospheric rise in popularity, availability and, above all, value.