Over the past year, many investors have become much wealthier, as certain pockets of the stock market have performed exceedingly well.
U.S. president Donald Trump came into office in January of this year after winning the election in November 2016, making way for the catalyst that propelled the markets south of the border much higher. With such a close neighbor doing so well, Canada has, without a doubt, benefited from a stronger U.S. economy in several key areas.
To begin with, shares in marijuana companies have rocketed higher due to the government’s intention to legalize pot, which has allowed many medical marijuana companies to come to market through the initial public offering (IPO) process and make their owners very wealthy. Shares of MedReleaf Corp. (TSX:LEAF), which were the biggest marijuana name to come to market in 2017, have increased by more than 110% since the first day of trading. Not only did company insiders reap the rewards, but those who’d bought early and held patiently have also made substantial amounts of money.
Just as investors thought the market was cooling, the next “out-of-this-world” gainer came into the newsroom front and centre: Bitcoin led the way with many cryptocurrencies following to compete with the high-priced leader. In 2017, the Winklevoss twins became billionaires, and a futures exchange was established in the hopes of making Bitcoin transparent to investors.
Where the opportunity lies in 2018
Although there is still a significant amount of potential in virtual currencies, it must be noted that the end game is not expected to be any more optimal than the current situation. We know that the government will “get their man” one way or another. For example, the government was unsuccessful at catching Al Capone in the act, so they sent the taxman after him, and he went to jail for tax evasion. Many suspect that the Bitcoin situation will be similar.
The way to get rich in 2018 will be to enjoy the run of these virtual currencies and partake in the IPOs (initial public offering) while they are “hot.” Although the expectation is that these currencies will end the year at a substantially lower price than they currently trade at today, in the meantime, there will be an extremely high probability that you can reap a large profit as these currencies move significantly higher.
Although traditional investors are not huge fans of dancing the night away in the hopes of ducking out right before the music stops, Bitcoin investors seem to think that this time is different. Why not give them a little more leeway, since they’ve been right so far?
In the hopes that many will enjoy the rewards of investing in virtual currencies: good luck — that is, until the taxman comes knocking.
