What the price actually tells you
Less than people assume. A cryptocurrency's price is the last figure someone paid, and on its own it says nothing about size, adoption or value — a coin at 0.60 can be worth far more in total than one at 400, depending on how many exist.
The number worth looking at is market capitalisation: price multiplied by the coins in circulation. That is the column on the right of the table above, and it is what makes two assets comparable.
Careful with market cap too. It is not money invested, and it is not money that could be taken out. It is simply the last traded price multiplied by every coin in existence — including those that never trade. In a thin market, a small amount of selling can move that headline figure by billions.
What moves these prices
- Liquidity and interest rates. Crypto has behaved like a high-risk technology asset: it tends to rise when money is cheap and fall when rates go up.
- Supply schedules. Bitcoin's issuance halves at fixed intervals, which is written into the protocol and known years ahead.
- Regulation. Approvals, bans and tax rulings move prices hard and at short notice.
- Sentiment and leverage. A large share of trading is borrowed money. Forced liquidations turn a modest move into a violent one, in both directions.
The volatility is the point, and the problem
A 5% day in the stock market is a headline. In crypto it is a Tuesday. Drawdowns of 70–80% from a peak have happened repeatedly, and recoveries have taken years.
That cuts both ways honestly: the same volatility that produced the returns people talk about is what makes this unsuitable for money you might actually need. Anything you cannot afford to see fall by three quarters — your emergency fund, a house deposit, next year's tuition — does not belong here.
Position size is the only risk control that works when you cannot predict the direction.
Before you buy anything
- Clear expensive debt first. Paying off a card at 22% is a guaranteed return. Nothing here is guaranteed anything. Run the numbers in the credit card payoff calculator.
- Decide the amount before you decide the coin. A sum you would be genuinely relaxed about losing entirely.
- Understand custody. "Not your keys, not your coins" is a cliché because exchanges have failed and taken customer funds with them. If you hold it yourself, losing the key means losing the money permanently — there is no support line.
- Know your tax position. In most countries selling or swapping crypto is a taxable event, and the record-keeping is on you.
- Assume anyone promising returns is lying. Guaranteed yields, doubling schemes and "risk-free arbitrage bots" are the oldest frauds in finance wearing new clothes. The five warning signs apply here more than anywhere.
Where the figures come from
Prices are volume-weighted averages across many exchanges, supplied by CoinGecko, and update continuously. The exact price you get when buying will differ: exchanges charge fees, apply their own spread, and quote different numbers at the same moment. Nothing here is a quote, an offer, or a recommendation to buy or sell anything.