3 Huge Changes Bitcoin Can Expect in 2018

2017 was definitely the year for Bitcoin, with lucky investors making several times of return off their initial investment. Trading 101 teaches us that no asset that continue growing indefinitely, but Bitcoin is not a stagnant asset—it has huge changes planned and in store for it, which can possibly help it overcome the flaws that some have found with its system. Unlike fiat currencies, Bitcoin as a digital currency can be updated and modified. This means that it never risks becoming outdated, as it can continuously reevaluate the current market and shape itself to better accommodate its users.

With these changes, Bitcoin is poised to perhaps not repeat its gains in 2017, but continue on aa steady and consistent rise as the year goes on. Here are3 huge changes Bitcoin can expect in 2018, and how exactly each of these changes can contribute significantly to the value of this cryptocurrency.

1) Transitioning From A Method of Value To A Store Of Value

Since Bitcoin’s release by Satoshi Nakamoto around a decade ago, users have purported that Bitcoin could reliably replace traditional fiat currencies as our daily means of exchange. However, certain conditions make it difficult for Bitcoin to be used as a reliable method of value. These include Bitcoin’s long transaction times and high transaction fees, on top of other conditions such as taxes and government regulations.

This has prompted the cryptocurrency community to change the way that they view Bitcoin. Instead of marketing it as a feasible way to replace fiat currencies, many Bitcoin advocates believe that it might be better to let other, smaller coins such as Litecoin and Ripple become the replacement for fiat currencies. Bitcoin, on the other hand, may be better compared to gold than fiat currencies: unlike fiat currencies, gold is not regularly traded in stores as a means of exchange. Instead, gold is commonly used as a store of value, and many believe that Bitcoin can become the same thing.

Some analysts such as Spencer Bogart believe that Bitcoin can hit $50,000 by the end of this year, and this will activate a trickle-down effect to other cryptocurrencies on the market. Largely, however, it is believed that Bitcoin is destined to continue growing for now.

2) SegWit Adoption

If you have been anywhere near the cryptocurrency community over the last six months, you may already be familiar with SegWit, or Segregated Witness. Many believe that the coming adoption of SegWit will save Bitcoin from many of the problems it is currently experiencing, which some believe is the cause for its current bottleneck on the market.

SegWit will solve the problem of high transaction fees and long transaction times which has plagued it since its rapid adoption in 2017. It is believed that SegWit will be adopted by more and more Bitcoin companies, but this has been a slow process due to the complex method of implementing it. However, once SegWit reaches more widespread adoption with Bitcoin networks, it is believed that its problems will soon be solved.

3) Sidechains

SegWit is just the first new innovation that Bitcoin will experience in 2018. There will also be the continued movement of Bitcoin towards the Lightning network, which will allow Bitcoin to continue scaling without its bottlenecking problems to continue exacerbating. The Lightning network will allow for the possibility of state channels or sidechains, which will take the load off of the main Bitcoin network and allow more transactions to process at smoother rates. With these changes, it is expected that Bitcoin will continue to rise in 2018.