现在进入加密货币还太晚吗？

由于特朗普第二届政府将推广比特币，本月比特币突破了 10 万美元大关。在竞选过程中，特朗普发誓要让美国成为“地球的加密货币之都”。

You scoffed when you heard about young millennial hipsters buying up cryptocurrency, hiding your secret shame at not knowing quite what it was.

当你听说年轻的千禧一代潮人购买加密货币时，你会嘲笑，隐藏你不知道它是什么的秘密耻辱。

You chortled when bitcoin hit $1,000, back in 2013. You shook your head when the digital currency flirted with $20,000, four years later.

2013 年，当比特币触及 1,000 美元时，你哈哈大笑。四年后，当数字货币触及 20,000 美元时，你摇摇头。

But when bitcoin soared past $100,000, earlier this month, you felt something different: Envy? Self-doubt? Resignation?

但本月早些时候，当比特币飙升至 10 万美元以上时，你会有不同的感觉：羡慕吗？自我怀疑？辞职？

In recent days, you’ve even thought about jumping on the crypto bandwagon at last. But you fear you may be too late. And, depending on your financial goals, risk tolerance and timeline, you might be right.

最近几天，您甚至终于想到要加入加密货币行列了。但你担心你可能已经太晚了。而且，根据您的财务目标、风险承受能力和时间表，您可能是对的。

To some extent, cryptocurrency is a generational phenomenon. Among millennials, “everybody knows someone who’s become a crypto millionaire,” said Craig J. Ferrantino, president of Craig Ferrantino Financial Services in Melville, New York, speaking to USA TODAY earlier this year.

在某种程度上，加密货币是一种代际现象。纽约梅尔维尔克雷格·费兰蒂诺金融服务公司总裁克雷格·J·费兰蒂诺今年早些时候在接受《今日美国》采访时表示，在千禧一代中，“每个人都认识成为加密货币百万富翁的人”。

If you’re a decade or two older, you may not know anyone who can even define crypto convincingly.

如果你年长一两岁，你可能不知道有谁能够令人信服地定义加密货币。

So, what exactly is crypto?

那么，加密货币到底是什么？

Cryptocurrency is digital money. It isn’t issued by governments or banks, so there’s no central authority. It exists on decentralized networks and uses a technology called blockchain, which tracks transactions and assets. Bitcoin is the leading brand.

加密货币是数字货币。它不是由政府或银行发行，因此没有中央机构。它存在于去中心化网络上，并使用一种称为区块链的技术来跟踪交易和资产。比特币是领先品牌。

For years, ordinary investors who wanted to trade digital currencies generally had to go to a crypto exchange, a potential deal-breaker for neophytes. That changed in early 2024, when federal regulators voted that ordinary American investors could buy and sell bitcoin ETFs in the same way they trade stocks.

多年来，想要交易数字货币的普通投资者通常不得不去加密货币交易所，这对新手来说可能会造成交易破坏。这种情况在 2024 年初发生了变化，当时联邦监管机构投票决定普通美国投资者可以像交易股票一样买卖比特币 ETF。

(Exchange-Traded Funds, or ETFs, are an investment vehicle, akin to mutual funds.)

（交易所交易基金（ETF）是一种投资工具，类似于共同基金。）

Bitcoin crossed the $100,000 threshold this month on talk that a second Trump Administration would promote it. On the campaign trail, Trump vowed to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet.”

由于特朗普第二届政府将推广比特币，本月比特币突破了 10 万美元大关。在竞选过程中，特朗普发誓要让美国成为“地球的加密货币之都”。

Is it too late to get into crypto? Has the “Trump effect” played out? If you do jump into digital currency, how much hard currency should you risk?

现在进入加密货币领域是否太晚了？ “特朗普效应”发挥了吗？如果你真的涉足数字货币，你应该冒多少硬通货的风险？

We asked some experts. Here’s what they said.

我们询问了一些专家。他们是这么说的。

If you haven't invested in crypto, is it too late?

如果你还没有投资加密货币，现在还来得及吗？

如果你还没有投资加密货币，现在还来得及吗？

“It is not too late to start investing in cryptocurrencies,” said Caleb Silver, editor in chief of Investopedia.

Investopedia 主编 Caleb Silver 表示：“现在开始投资加密货币还为时不晚。”

But ask yourself: Why?

但问问自己：为什么？

Profiting from bitcoin’s rise “may be your primary reason,” Silver said, “but it's important to understand that all cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, are highly volatile, unregulated and widely misunderstood.”

从比特币的上涨中获利“可能是你的主要原因，”西尔弗说，“但重要的是要了解，包括比特币在内的所有加密货币都具有高度波动性、不受监管且被广泛误解。”

Bernd Schmid, contributing crypto analyst at The Motley Fool, more or less agrees.

The Motley Fool 的特约加密货币分析师 Bernd Schmid 或多或少同意这一点。

“It’s not too late to start investing in crypto,” he said, “as long as you have a long-term perspective. Crypto adoption is today where internet adoption was in the late 1990s and early 2000s.”

他说：“只要你有长远的眼光，开始投资加密货币还不算太晚。今天加密货币的采用就像 20 世纪 90 年代末和 2000 年代初互联网的采用一样。”

Bryan Armour, director of passive strategies research for North America at Morningstar Research Services, preaches caution with crypto.

晨星研究服务公司北美被动策略研究主管 Bryan Armour 主张对加密货币保持谨慎态度。

“It’s not too late, but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a good investment,” he said. “Crypto remains a speculative investment with high volatility. There’s no need for someone to invest in it if they are uncomfortable with that.”

“现在还不算太晚，但这并不意味着这一定是一项好的投资，”他说。 “加密货币仍然是一种具有高波动性的投机性投资。如果有人对此感到不舒服，就没有必要投资。”

Jonathan Swanburg, a certified financial planner in Houston, is even more skeptical.

休斯敦的注册财务规划师乔纳森·斯旺伯格 (Jonathan Swanburg) 则更加持怀疑态度。

“I’m not a crypto guy,” he said, “but if you didn’t like crypto at $20,000, I think you need to look at why you would possibly like it at $100,000, except for FOMO (fear of missing out). So, yes, I do think it is too late.”

“我不是加密货币爱好者，”他说，“但如果你不喜欢 20,000 美元的加密货币，我认为你需要看看为什么你可能会喜欢 100,000 美元的加密货币，除了 FOMO（害怕错过） 。所以，是的，我确实认为为时已晚。”

Has the 'Trump effect' played out? Will bitcoin rise further?

“特朗普效应”发挥了吗？比特币还会进一步上涨吗？

“特朗普效应”发挥了吗？比特币还会进一步上涨吗？

“Yes and no,” Schmid said.

“是的，也不是，”施密德说。

“Yes, because the possibility of a crypto-friendly administration was initially undervalued and is now priced in,” meaning that bitcoin’s value already reflects the Trump effect.

“是的，因为对加密货币友好的政府的可能性最初被低估，现在已经被定价，”这意味着比特币的价值已经反映了特朗普效应。

“No,” Schmid said, “because we’re still waiting for concrete regulatory developments” in the second Trump Administration.

“不，”施密德说，“因为我们仍在等待特朗普第二届政府的具体监管进展”。

Silver agrees.

银同意了。

“While the election effect on the price of cryptocurrencies may have played out for now,” he said, “the Trump administration is gearing up to create an entire new regulatory ecosystem around this asset class by appointing David Sacks, a former PayPal executive, as the nation’s first crypto czar, and nominating Paul Atkins, a Wall Street veteran, as SEC chairman.

他表示：“虽然选举对加密货币价格的影响目前可能已经显现，但特朗普政府正准备围绕这一资产类别创建一个全新的监管生态系统，任命 PayPal 前高管戴维·萨克斯 (David Sacks) 为美国第一位加密货币沙皇，并提名华尔街资深人士保罗·阿特金斯 (Paul Atkins) 担任 SEC 主席。

“Those moves, and Trump's campaign promise to make the U.S. the 'crypto capital of the world,' set the stage for cryptocurrencies to become more widely available to retail investors, which could boost prices.”

“这些举措以及特朗普竞选时承诺让美国成为‘世界加密货币之都’，为散户投资者更广泛地使用加密货币奠定了基础，这可能会推高价格。”

What if you want to buy crypto but don't know how?

如果您想购买加密货币但不知道如何购买怎么办？

如果您想购买加密货币但不知道如何购买怎么办？