All cryptos buyers (except BTC) should be careful and not gamble with this sector. Invest in it. Wisely. And for now enjoy the ride! But remember, the coins (even ETH) are not limited other than the rate at which they can be continually and endlessly mined. ETH as an enterprise does not generate a profit. Ask yourself with an unlimited supply how much one 'Ether' is worth? The answer is nothing. Can you imagine what ETH's P/E ratio would look like as an enterprise? Still though, not an immediate worry as that could take years but eventually only those coins which are limited in total supply will hold as a store of value. We don't know what valuable purpose they'll eventually serve yet, but anything with limited supply and some demand will 'store' value. So crypto has several big tests coming:
1. Most importantly, how widespread will crypto acceptance become as a purchasing device? Which is directly related to
2. How volatile will crypto value remain? If it's at current volatility, adoption as a currency will be impossible. If your wallet gets 5% lighter or heavier in between the time it takes to make a single transaction, nobody will use it except for grey and black market activity. If it gets past those two *major* hurdles then
3. How high will transaction fees become? Cash transaction fees are, in many cases, zero with traditional currencies. I can transfer small or large amounts over several brokerage accounts and my personal banks and businesses with zero fees (other than up to 3 days wait time to 'clear'). Person to person are the only transfers that incur (somewhat) prohibitive fees. And there are no 20%+ swings in dollar value every few days. (Example: You buy a $70,000 car with Bitcoin and within a few days, that same amount of coin is worth $120,000. That means you could have saved $50,000 dollars waiting just a few days). That won't sit well with many. But even that's not a deal breaker as long as the crypto coin itself remains a good store of value (and continues appreciating in value). Which leads one to question
4. Will governments themselves create blockchains and tie their currencies to them or some form of government coin of their own? If they do, all alternative crypto will go under except that which can retain anonymity in transactions and be legally converted to legally transferable tender.
I don't even factor in quantum computing and hacking because those can be dealt with creatively when/if that should become problematic.
So we have a way to go. But we're getting there. One announcement by one huge retailer like Target, Home Depot, Amazon, etc to begin accepting crypto and BTC will be a million-dollar coin overnight. A big enough retailer that you could be sure others would follow. Boom! The whole game changes. And that's quite likely! Worth your investment here now for that possibility alone. Add in the anonymity and existing increases in value and it's a good deal. It's not 'life savings good' or 'mortgage good' but absolutely 'money I can afford to lose good'.
Disclaimer: I'm long and HODL on BTC, ETH, ADA, LINK (but will likely roll all into BTC eventually)
Food for thought,
OTH