Chess is a game that teaches many lessons beyond the board. Today we explore how great investors can learn important lessons from the masters of this ancient game. When it comes to learning how to invest, understanding an asset is only half of the battle.
A great game of chess isn’t played in real-time. The moment the first piece is moved, competitors look to gain an edge. They predict the patterns, plans, and traps of their opponent. Masters study the art of game theory to become both better players and even better people.
You could be the best historian, coder, developer, builder, educator paired with a desire to make money and still miss the forest for the trees. This is akin to a chess player who understands the game’s philosophy, rules, and strategies but fails to maintain a competitive edge. Foresight is the name of the game in both pursuits.
A chess master strategizes many moves ahead. They often see almost the entire gameplay out in their head 8 moves before it happens. Great investors aren’t worried about today. Every skill level sees the same set of information today. What matters is the coming days, weeks, months, and years that make or break a profitable investor. Unless your next move is your last move, it doesn’t matter.
I am neither a master investor nor a master chess player. In an attempt to emulate their foresight, honor their methodology, and hone my skills, I compiled a list of 8 future events that may impact our space in the far-out future.
Governments Buying Bitcoin
El Salvador is the only country in the world to publicly buy Bitcoin as an investment. Other countries, including the U.S., have auctioned Bitcoin after seizing it from criminals. But we have yet to see the massive wave of government adoption we are all hoping for. For the time being, we really only witness the beginning of governments regulating the currency in the private sector and establishing laws.
When regulation begins to plateau, is when we would likely begin to see real government participation. For the first time, we begin to witness separate governing agencies join forces (FDIC, OCC, and FED) to achieve agreed-upon clarity for banks. This should clarify rules surrounding a bank’s ability to hold crypto on balance sheets, issue stablecoins, and provide custodial services or crypto trading services on behalf of customers.
When the banks are comfortable with crypto, governments will come next. We already know that governments invest in gold. That’s why I believe over time they will realize digital gold is superior. After all, we live in a digital world.
Companies Buying Bitcoin
Tesla, Square, and Microstrategy, are the mainstream names that took a leap of faith on Bitcoin. But the truth is they only scratch the surface. These companies made headlines for taking on the risk of direct exposure, but they aren’t the only pioneers. Countless hedge funds, VC firms, corporations, and other financial groups are gaining exposure in all sorts of unique ways. Mining stocks, GBTC, crypto-based ETFs, and the Bitcoin futures ETF are some of the popular vehicles groups look to gain exposure to Bitcoin through.
Yes, we all want to hear Amazon or Facebook add Bitcoin to the balance sheet, but don’t be fooled. Companies find exposure in subtle and safer ways because interest is at an all-time high. Bitcoin is a perfect inflation hedge, and corporations are quickly learning they have to adapt to changing times. This will continue to be a major driver of adoption.
More Crypto Companies Going Public
When Coinbase went public, it was the story of the month. It actually turned out to be a low time frame top that took months for the market to recover from. More importantly, it was symbolic of the marriage of our emerging sector with traditional finance.
Almost every company in the crypto space is traded privately. A lot of them are entering into their B and C stage funding rounds. Over the coming years, we should see a lot more companies follow in the footsteps of Coinbase. After all, Coinbase has been around a long time and had a huge head start on the competition, but their lead isn’t that far ahead.
It’s inevitable we see more of them follow in the footsteps of Coinbase, going public and offering an opportunity for non-crypto investors to gain secondary exposure to the asset class. Whether you agree or not, many investors only view a company as legitimate once they are publicly listed. More access and ways to invest in the asset class = more mainstream investors.
More Mergers And Acquisitions
The current state of crypto innovation is siloed in distinct communities that struggle to interact with each other. A lot of great products exist, buried far away from each other and bear no relationships. I can’t think of a one-stop-shop where investors can deposit fiat, buy crypto, collect interest, set up a wallet, take a loan, farm for yield, swap assets, trade, and read reputable news.
We have already seen some large acquisitions ie. Binance acquires CoinMarketCap, FTX acquires Blockfolio, Coinbase acquires Bison Trails, but the space is still very fragmented. Over time, the strongest companies will continue to acquire each other or merge to create a more seamless user experience, but until then we will have to wait. Developers, users, builders, investors, and traders would all benefit from this, it will truly result in mainstream adoption. When we start to see more mergers and acquisitions, we will know we are getting closer or there.
The Flippening
I am not here to convince you that Ethereum will or will not flip Bitcoin by market cap. If it does happen, Ethereum would be the first asset to ever dethrone Bitcoin – it would be monumental. Whether you like Ethereum or not, the reality of a flippening is a real possibility.
Bitcoin dominance is dropping and Ethereum interest is gaining. For example, we just saw institutions buy more Ethereum than Bitcoin using Grayscale’s platform, along with them reporting more and more clients asking about the asset. Bitcoin solves the problem of wealth storage, but Ethereum is taking on a different problem. It is reorganizing finance altogether, a programmable platform that can bring blockchain technology to everyone and everything.
If you buy into the Ethereum story, you might be inclined to think that Etheruem is solving a bigger problem than Bitcoin – thus it one day achieving a bigger market cap. A flippening would be insanely bullish for Ethereum, if you aren’t at least considering the possibility, you are limiting yourself as an investor.
Ethereum 2.0
Ethereum’s 2.0 transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake will be the most groundbreaking upgrade in the history of the crypto space – hands down. This isn’t just a win for Ethereum investors and users, it’s a testament to the progress of our entire space. The entire network will benefit, seeing increased speed, scalability, usability, security, and decentralization.
There is a lot of criticism around 2.0 because it has taken a long time, but the team’s philosophy is that every detail has to be done right. Vitalik is treating the launch like a space mission, testing and checking every detail multiple times over to make sure nothing can go wrong. Every minor upgrade leading up until the merge has gone well, ie. Altair and EIP-1559, which is also a good sign.
Keep in mind, every major coin that has successfully undergone an upgrade has seen serious price appreciation in advance. We have seen it happen with Cardano, Solana, Elrond, and even with Ethereum’s minor upgrades. If you think Etheruem 2.0 is already priced in, you are not thinking far enough ahead. As for when the upgrade will happen, developers are trying to make it happen in Q1 or Q2 of this year.
A Bitcoin Spot ETF
At this point, we have seen a number of different crypto investment vehicles find government approval around the world, namely ETFs, but without participation from the U.S. A Bitcoin Futures ETF was approved – a step in the right direction, but an inferior product to a spot-based ETF. Canada has now even approved both a spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF, the world is waiting on the U.S.
The SEC seems reluctant to seriously consider a spot-based product, which many believe is unlikely to be approved under the current regime. It will happen eventually, some speculators think this year, either way, it will be a major driver of price and interest. Eventually there will be all sorts of crypto ETF products like there is for gold. There will be levered ETFs, inverse ETFs, alternative ETFs with other assets, and some that mix in a little bit of everything. When the Bitcoin spot ETF comes, this will be a HUGE development.
The Next Bull Market
The bear market will come; it is inevitable and part of the natural cycle of every market. When Bitcoin eventually corrects and everyone thinks it’s “dead,” will you be the brave investor willing to buy the fear once again? If history repeats, our current bull market should be the biggest one as interest and awareness increase. After all, the goal is to include the world into our new financial system.
Some investors have even begun to draw similarities to our current market pattern to the 2000 internet boom. If you remember, the Dot-com bubble was catastrophic, but strong companies emerged from the ashes and continue to flourish to this day. It’s never comfortable to stomach bear markets, but that’s the best way to position yourself for a bull market.
With these 8 predictions in mind, it’s time to invest like a master chess player – 8 moves ahead. If you enjoyed these predictions, I suggest you read about why The Greatest Investors Are Adamant.