If you’re new to Bitcoin, you may not know this one essential fact.
There is an absolute limit to the number of Bitcoins that can ever be created. That’s part of the original protocol, and cannot be changed.
That number is 21 million.
Over 18.5 million have already been created. And there is a limit to the number of those last few million coins that can be created each year.
Put simply, the absolute limit on the number of Bitcoins that exist delivers absolute scarcity.
Think of this in terms of gold…
Imagine if the gold bullion market were limited to just 21 million one-ounce gold coins. And now imagine all the gold mines closed down, so no new coins could be created, ever.
Imagine what that would do to the price of gold.
One more thing…
Now imagine that all those gold coins are already owned by a central bank, company or person. You can no longer buy gold through a mint. You have to buy from people who already own the gold.
How much do you think one ounce of gold would be worth?
OK… back to Bitcoins…
The Bitcoin market is probably larger than you imagine.
Bitcoin, or BTC, has a market cap of about $283.5 BILLION.
About $30 BILLION in Bitcoin are traded each day.
This is no longer a fringe investment.
In fact, many publicly-traded companies are now investing a part of their treasuries into Bitcoin.
- MicroStrategy Inc has $425,000,000 invested in Bitcoin.
- Galaxy Digital Holdings has $134,000,000 invested.
- Square Inc has $50,000,000 invested.
And there are many more companies and high-worth individuals investing millions in Bitcoin right now.
First, this is a huge validation for Bitcoin. A big thumbs up. A recognition that Bitcoin is “real”.
But here’s something else to think about…
With billions of dollars already invested, and a cap of 21 million Bitcoins total… new people coming in are having to buy from sellers.
With Bitcoin, we’re already in the version of a gold market where every gold coin is already owned by someone, and no more gold can be mined.
On top of that, these are still early days.
Those hundreds of billions of dollars already invested come from the early adopters.
The next phase of investors… and they’re coming on board right now… are a much larger group.
They didn’t want to be the first to commit to Bitcoin. But they don’t want to be last either.
That’s a lot of new money looking for Bitcoin.
Nothing drives prices higher than absolute scarcity.
One more thing.
With fiat currencies, governments keep printing more money. There is no cap on the number of dollars that can be created.
The outcome? Too much money printing leads inevitably to inflation, and the devaluation of the currency.
That’s another treason why Bitcoin is so attractive.
You can’t “print” more of it. 21 million is a hard limit.
And that makes Bitcoin an inflation-proof store of value.
Sound attractive?
Just one more reason why the price is set to go higher and higher.
Where can you buy Bitcoin?
There are various ways to buy Bitcoin. But unless you’re already an expert, your best bet is to buy through an exchange.
This allows you to buy, sell, and store your Bitcoin all in the same place.
Kraken and Coinbase are two of the largest and best established exchanges.
Create an account with Kraken…
Set up an account at Coinbase…
[OwningGold is an affiliate of both Kraken and Coinbase. This means that if you sign up for either service after following one of our links, we’ll receive a small commission.]
Further reading:
Bitcoin… It’s like gold, but digital. There’s plenty to love about it.
Digital Gold: Why Bitcoin Has Many of the Qualities Investors Value in Gold
6 Good reasons to own gold coins or gold bars.
Storing gold – at home, in a safety deposit box, or with your dealer.