Meet Jessica, the finance executive taking the DYOR approach to crypto

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From strategic partnerships to setting up shop in the metaverse, it feels like the opportunities are endless when it comes to the ways brands and institutions are investing in cryptocurrencies.

Where once heavy hitters such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs were wary of this new technology, their steadily increasing confidence has given a green light to individual investors who were previously on the fence.

In the second half of 2020, one such investor was Jessica, a corporate finance executive who became inspired to start buying bitcoin once she saw big institutions investing in the space.

“Square, PayPal – when I saw all these big funds putting so much money into crypto, that made me see that there might really be room for this crypto to grow to become something bigger. At that point, I started allocating more of my spare funds into crypto,” Jessica explained.

To put this into context, as of September, just 65 publicly traded and private companies, ETFs and countries hold about 6.9% of all Bitcoin that will ever exist, worth over $30 billion in value.

Beyond a quick buck

Looking for more than just financial gains from her investments, Jessica embarked on her own learning journey to find out more about the technology behind cryptocurrencies and what it could offer beyond just a healthy return.

Taking the example of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), she could see that blockchain technology still had a lot of room to grow over the long term. “I think the transactional space will still be the main case for crypto going forward, but continued disruption of the finance and transactional space could lead to more use cases in the future,” she said.

Having gained a lot of insight into crypto through her research, Jessica also believes that in a volatile market, newcomers should try to understand the technology behind the coin as best they can if they are looking to invest in the long-term to diversify their portfolio.

That is one of the reasons why she signed up to Luno as her investment platform of choice, saying she felt she could navigate through the various coins much more easily than compared to other more complex apps.

“Since Luno is regulated in Malaysia, it’s a safe option […] it’s a plus that you can very easily transact, buy and sell, especially for beginners who don’t want to make any mistakes.”

Jessica

More eyes on crypto

As the technology behind cryptocurrencies continues to evolve, so does the increasing presence of regulation. While some people debate about how much regulation should be present when it comes to crypto, Jessica believes this is part and parcel of institutional adoption.

When asked about the risk of regulation, she often reminds her friends that this risk is always going to be there until crypto becomes more mainstream.

“Last year, the Chinese government suddenly banned Bitcoin mining which led to a market crash so you can’t control these kinds of events. Just be aware and prepare for them,” she explained. However, as institutional investment is what initially drove Jessica to want to explore the world of crypto, she accepts this is a part of growing interest from the mainstream markets.

When asked what advice she would give to the crypto-curious, she highlighted several questions to bear in mind before choosing which coins to invest in, but above all highlighted the importance of research.

“Consider what the technology behind blockchain is, what would people need more of crypto in the future and what usage or utility can it serve,” she said, adding, “If people that manage mutual funds are also starting to look at crypto, then perhaps you should too because experienced professionals won’t just invest in something blindly without doing their own research.”