Yes, cryptocurrency is volatile. Is it, however, just a passing fad, or is it here to stay?

<p>Anyone who has followed Bitcoin's erratic price swings since its inception may become dizzy.</p> <p>When it was first introduced in 2009, a unit of the pioneering cryptocurrency was worth... nothing. According to data from SoFi, a student loan refinancing firm, the price rose to US$1 within about two years and then surged upward in value to around US$30 months later. But then it dropped to $5.</p> <p>By 2013, the price of Bitcoin had reached a high of US$1,100, according to SoFi. It took off from there, reaching a high of more than US$60,000 in 2021, but with many stomach-churning swings. It was fluctuating between US$48,000 and US$46,000 in mid-December.</p> <p>As a result of this roller-coaster ride, economists and experts have formed opposing camps regarding the future of not only Bitcoin, but the entire cryptocurrency sector.</p> <p>For those who are unfamiliar, digital currency is a type of money that is created and tracked in cyberspace using blockchain technology, which is best described as a digital ledger. Unlike "fiat" currency like dollars, which is backed by the US government, crypto is largely untethered to controls like federal reserve banks. The digital ledger is viewable by all users, making it an unusually transparent form of currency. However, there are a lot of unknowns and questions about how crypto will be regulated in the future, which almost always leads to volatility.</p> <p>Hugh Johnson, an eminent financial advisor in the Capital Region, listed cryptocurrency as a risk factor to watch in his annual market forecast for 2022. According to him, the combination of volatility and a lack of regulation poses a threat to the market's stability.</p> <p>"It's difficult, at best, to make the case that (crypto) has a fundamental appeal that goes beyond being a possible hedge against inflation or financial disarray," Johnson said. "If it doesn't go beyond that... if there isn't a fundamental reason to buy Bitcoin, it becomes a price-only speculation."</p> <p>According to Johnson's colleague