**Which Cryptocurrency Should You Invest In Before 2018?**

Cryptocurrency is definitely a popular topic these days especially since Bitcoin just reached an all time high of $17,000 per coin. The question is, which cryptocurrency should you invest in by 2018? Will there be another coin that peaks as much as Bitcoin? Will we miss the opportunity yet again?There are currently at least 1,000 different types of coins as listed on Coinmarketcap. Which one will prevail? Or rather, which group of coins will survive?

Nobody knows for certain, but we normally look at certain traits to see if a coin has potential or not. Here are some factors that you should consider:

Who is the team that developed the coin? Are they highly reputable?
How active are they in maintaining and improving on the coin?
Do they actively communicate with their investors?
What is the technology behind the coin? Is it blockchain-based?
What is the total number of coins that will be issued and how many are in circulation?
How much are these coins worth now?
How much of these coins were premined and can you mine them?
How many exchanges are these coins traded on?

There are many factors to consider before purchasing cryptocurrencies. Don’t take people’s opinion as gold. Similarly, don’t follow my advice simply because I wrote about it. Always, always do your own research and make your own decisions. This is because cryptocurrencies are very volatile and you may lose all of your money if something happens. Never invest more than you can afford to.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, here are a few coins I would recommend buying.

1.Ethereum

Ethereum is dubbed to be the best Bitcoin alternative and it’s reflected in its price. It trades at $730 at the time of writing.

The reason why Ethereum is amazing is because it introduced an Ethereum network, in which other coins can be based. It made programming on blockchain so many times easier, which is why many of the popular coins are based on Ethereum. Look at OmiseGo and Golem.
Another reason is the introduction of smart contracts by Ethereum. Bitcoin also has a very simple smart contract, i.e. the sending and receiving of coins. But that’s about it. Ethereum’s smart contract system is at a different level. It allows people to manage agreements between each other, and ensures that payment is made upon the performance of the agreement.

It has a lot more flexibility than Bitcoin and I foresee it to be the next big thing. It’s already pretty popular, but it may surpass Bitcoin some day.

2.Litecoin

With Bitcoin shooting up over 115% this past month, people have been left confused and scared over what could happen next due to its volatile nature. The third Largest Cryptocurrency, Litecoin, has also been on the up. It has seen an incredible 7,291% increase since the start of 2017, compared to Bitcoin’s 1,731%. Litecoin hit $320 for the first time on Tuesday and it is currently trading at $327.95, up 447.64% at Coinbase. Bitcoin’s rise is considered to have touched the saturation level by investors, who are seeking the opportunity to invest in other digital currency such as Litecoin, which has the potential to rise even further.

3. Steem

Steem is a token that is used on Steemit (an incentivized social media cum blogging platform). It comes with Steem dollars as well, meaning there are two different cryptocurrencies on that platform. However, Steem dollars is pegged to $1, unlike Steem which depends on market forces.

I think it has value because of Steemit itself. When you look at social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, they are not incentivized. There’s a better chance that you’ll need to pay them to use the platform, than to make money from it. Steemit on the other hand, allows you to make money in the form of Steem and Steem dollars, simply by posting quality content. This means that you can actually blog for money on Steemit, although how much you earn depends on who upvotes your content.

On Steemit, you can power up your Steem into Steem power. Your amount of Steem power decides how much your vote is worth. For instance, if I have 1,000 Steem power (equivalent of 1,000 Steem), my full upvote is worth $0.20. However, when you have 500,000 Steem power, your full upvote can be around $100. See the big difference? In other words, you are encouraged to put your money into Steemit.

Furthermore, if you want to withdraw money, you need to wait 3 months for the power down to fully complete. This discourages people from moving money away from Steemit, and therefore maintains the value of Steemit. To make a lot of money from Steemit, you should network well with all sorts of people, including those with a high amount of Steem power, a.k.a. whales.

Currently, Steemit only has about 300,000 registered accounts and slightly above 10,000 active daily users. Imagine if it becomes mainstream like Facebook.

Furthermore, Steemit is introducing Smart Media Tokens soon. What’s that? Think of Steem becoming a network like Ethereum and allowing anyone to create their own tokens. All of these tokens will be based on the Steem blockchain!
To be honest, nobody knows for sure. It’s always a high risk when you invest in cryptocurrencies as it’s extremely volatile. Your $50 coin may be worth $0.50 the next day. Hence, do your own research, make your own decision and don’t invest more than you can afford to. Don’t put your livelihood at stake.

So which cryptocurrency should you invest in
To be honest, nobody knows for sure. It’s always a high risk when you invest in cryptocurrencies as it’s extremely volatile. Your $50 coin may be worth $0.50 the next day. Hence, do your own research, make your own decision and don’t invest more than you can afford to. Don’t put your livelihood at stake.

This article is not to be taken as investment advice, as it’s just my own speculation.