The buzzword of 2017 and possibly 2018 is ‘Bitcoin’. While institutional investors like Gennady Barsky remain neutral to the idea of Bitcoin, some are reluctant to invest in this digital currency that has taken the world by storm. Jack Ma, the founder, and executive chairman of Alibaba Group clearly conveyed his disinterest in Bitcoin, albeit he showed keenness in the technology behind it.

Jamie Dimon, on the other hand, is a fierce opponent of Bitcoin trading. He went as far as dishonorably relieving his employees who were investing in Bitcoin, citing ‘stupidity’ as the grounds of firing.

Gennady Barsky, who’s willing to fund fresh ideas, suggests waiting for Bitcoin to develop in terms of technology, so it’s safer for investors. The world’s most famous cryptocurrency had been dwelling the shady alleys of the Dark Web. Earlier, it was known to be used for human trafficking, illegal organ trade, illegal arms deals, and hitman contracts. “It needs a lot of catching up to do with the contemporary economy”, says Gennady Barsky. Despite its dark past, the concept supporting Bitcoin has many takers, including Jack Ma.

Blockchain made Bitcoin possible, and Jack Ma is using it to advance China’s healthcare and fight the resurgence of spurious food imitations. As for the trading part, the Alibaba boss cites Bitcoin’s incompatibility with the current economic order, as it will be easily toppled by the former’s volatility.

Another reason Jack Ma doesn’t want to jump onto the bandwagon is because he knows very little about Bitcoin trading. Concurrently, according to most of the traders, there are a lot of ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ in Bitcoin.

The Bitcoin value has crashed hard in a span of six days by more than $3,000. Trends suggest it will continue downhill. Those wary of Bitcoin explained thus sudden descent as the bursting of the Bitcoin bubble. There are a number of factors dictating the price of Bitcoins, all of which can be considered fickle.

The biggest factor is the cryptocurrency fan base. As mentioned before, cryptocurrency is a trend espoused by investors. Speculation and demand have encouraged people to ask for more Bitcoins, driving up the demand. When the supply is short, the value rises.

Instead of a central regulatory body, Bitcoin miners enjoy a monopoly in the market, and are free to dictate the Bitcoin value as they see fit. If a buyer is willing to pay 10 times the cost price (the expenditure of resources to mine a Bitcoin), it automatically inflates the price in the market by a few points.

“An immediate factor of the Bitcoin price rise is its hype. Buyers are finding it difficult to trade in Bitcoins, since most of the vendors won’t accept the cryptocurrency. The death of the hype will surely influence miners to stop, given that there will be lack of investors in the fold,” explains Institutional Investor Barsky. Right now, it’s better to speculate till there’s a better and safer mechanism in place to invest in Bitcoin.

Bitcoin isn’t a currency as a lot of people believe it to be. It’s an asset, whose price depends on a number of aspects that cannot be controlled outright. For example, real estate can be revamped with the latest technology and fittings, which increases its value. Bitcoin can only be sold at a higher price at the buyer’s discretion, with nothing substantial to back up the increased price. Undoubtedly, it’s a precarious business.

A gambling of sorts, if the deal goes south, you can suffer a lot of damages. “Invest in Bitcoin only if you can afford to lose money,” advise most of the investment experts. It’s a highly speculative business with which you can make a lot of profit, or as Gennady Barsky suggests, play it safe and let time unveil Bitcoin’s reliability.