Wells Fargos investment institute published a special report titled “Understanding Cryptocurrency” this week. The report attempts to answer whether it is “too early or too late” to invest in cryptocurrencies.
The Wells Fargo team explained:
We believe that cryptocurrencies are viable investments today, even though they remain in the early stages of their investment evolution.
They added: “We recommend professionally managed private placements for now, as the investment landscape is still maturing.”
The research team continued: “We see cryptocurrencies in the ‘early, but not too early’ investment stage, which is why we have emphasized investor education. The thrust of our view comes from global cryptocurrency adoption rates, which have quickly accelerated from a low base.” They noted:
Cryptocurrencies have been following an adoption pattern similar to other new advanced technologies, such as the internet.
The Wells Fargo analysts reiterated, “For todays investor trying to figure out if we are early or late to cryptocurrency investing, looking at technology investing in the mid-to-late 1990s seems reasonable.” They added:
At that time, the internet hit a hyper-adoption phase and never looked back. Cryptocurrencies appear to be at a similar stage today … We are hopeful that greater regulatory clarity in 2022 brings higher quality investment options.
Nonetheless, the firm recommended: “Cryptocurrency investment options today, however, are still maturing and we advise patience. For now, we suggest the consideration of only professionally managed private placements.”
Wells Fargo started offering crypto investments to clients in August last year. The firm has also filed for a bitcoin fund with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).