Fluctuating Rates

But then it came to a halt. The voices that warned about the extremely volatile exchange rates were proven right. The first quarter of 2018 saw crypto rates plummeting, marking the beginning of a period of extreme instability. In late 2020, crypto prices rocketed again, followed by some eighteen months of wild oscillations. The values plunged again in March 2022. For some time, cryptocurrencies were loathed as a flash in the pan and expected to disappear. But they did not. Most of them were able to retain some value, and people started buying again. And the biggest success was yet to come. In December 2024, bitcoin reached a new historic high, beating the magical threshold of USD 100,000, and has kept a fine rate since then. 

Reality Check

But not everything was high. What dropped was the confidence of small-scale investors. Investment in bitcoin turned out to be more problematic than it looked, and despite the continual growth, the promise of giant gains became less certain. And what was true for bitcoin applied doubly to other, less stable currencies.

The crypto-world had to deal with other challenges as well, such as the crash of the cryptocurrency exchange company FTX in 2022 (often likened to the fall of Lehman Bros in 2008), and the failure of other companies in the field. In addition, nation states and international bodies have increased their efforts to control cryptocurrencies and introduce measures to prevent money laundering. The interest of the public gradually faded, and only the keenest optimists still see bitcoin as the currency of the future.