Black Americans and Bitcoin
• Black Americans have been drawn to Bitcoin due to its potential, technology, and price movement.
• Millions of people invested in Bitcoin with their COVID-19 stimulus checks.
• However, the crypto market crash has hurt Black investors disproportionately.
The Crypto Bubble
In the late 2010s, a significant number of black Americans began researching Bitcoin with enthusiasm. They saw the promise of its blockchain technology, a distributed ledger that provides an immutable record of transactions, as well as watched the price movement of bitcoin hitting record highs. With the distribution of COVID-19 stimulus checks in 2020, millions of people who had never had much to invest or save suddenly had cash on hand and many chose to put them into bitcoin.
Unfortunately, over the last year following this period where many black investors found bitcoin, the overall crypto market has started to shrink; cryptocurrency holdings have disappeared after these digital currencies entered into a winter market resulting in more than $2 trillion being lost in value with bitcoin plunging from highs of $69,000 reached in November 2021 to around $20,000 per coin now.
Addressing Financial Inclusion
Bitcoin naturally holds practical appeal for small-dollar investors from historically marginalized communities who distrust traditional finance. For instance, Black Americans can purchase BTC on digital platforms without a credit check which may hold them back from financial inclusion in other assets. This is why many Black investors have invested funds into bitcoin because they believe it will give them financial autonomy despite the risks associated with it.
Lessons Learned
Although investing in cryptocurrency may be risky and expensive for some people due to losses related to crypto bubbles or crashes such as we are seeing now; there are important lessons that can be learned from black investors about becoming an intelligent investor regardless if purchasing Bitcoin or not: doing your research before investing and understanding exactly how digital assets work can go a long way when it comes to making smart investments decisions no matter what asset you choose.
Conclusion
Despite recent downturns in cryptocurrency markets black Americans continue to show interest in digital assets due both its potential profit but also its promise of financial independence which makes it attractive for those who distrust traditional finance systems due lack of access and opportunity provided by them. With their enthusiasm for this new technology there is much that other investors can learn about proper research methods and understanding how digital assets work before committing funds towards them regardless if they are interested on buying Bitcoin or not.