Where Is Every BTC Hodler Spending Their Portfolio?

The past few decades have seen an absolutely unprecedented technological transformation around the world. Digital technology is changing the way we live, revolutionizing almost all industries. Companies, big or small, are trying their best to satisfy the needs of modern consumers. 

The development is mainly driven by an immense expansion of the technology companies that gained momentum in the 1990s. From that time onwards, they have been re-inventing our daily living. Today, almost everyone has a smartphone, computer or even other, more specific gadgets such as smartwatches and TVs. They are making our lives easier, more convenient and accessible, becoming an inseparable part of modern reality. 

As mentioned above, this process made changes in almost every sector and industry around the globe. However, finance undoubtedly became the most successful field in this regard. Commercial banks and other financial institutions have changed themselves to the very core, introducing never-seen-before products to the public. 

Everything probably started in the 1950s with the introduction of plastic cards, however, as they never managed to achieve immediate popularity, the process had been paused for a few decades. Later on, credit and debit card payments became dominant on the market, soon joined by some other, even more, revolutionary means. Cards themselves advanced their features. Notably, the introduction of contactless cards that use Near-field communication technology (NFC) was a real game-changer. Cards now were faster, smoother and more convenient than ever before. This change attracted further crowds and made cashless payments more popular.

However, the biggest step forward in cashless payments was the launch of mobile transactions, again, with the help of NFC technology. Nowadays, every commercial bank provides mobile or web services. Without them, they likely risk a major loss of clients. Digital services are demanded by the youth and are gradually becoming popular among the older generations. 

In 2009, amid all of the changes happening in the financial industry, the first-ever decentralized virtual currency - Bitcoin was introduced. The cryptocurrency is based on blockchain technology, making it greatly trustworthy, safe and transparent. Many small and medium-sized companies saw tangible benefits in using virtual currencies. Yet, many legislations lack the legal recognition of them. 

Bitcoin remains the most successful, expensive and widely-acknowledged cryptocurrency on earth. Its price point has been swinging up and down since its listing on international markets. The year 2017 was the biggest boom for bitcoin as its price at first exceeded $10,000 and then almost reached the $20,000 mark. However, the price has been moving around greatly and soon after its 2017 uprise, the bar came down to just under $10,000. 

Many people have made major investments in Bitcoin, resulting in profits. HODLers, individuals who own significant amounts of cryptos are now trying to make more trustworthy, stable investments. They seek stability more than anything else since Bitcoin's price is changing without much logic, causing uncertainty within the community. Here are some of the top fields where HODLers spend their portfolio:

Gambling Platforms

If you've ever Googled anything resembling Bitcoin or cryptocurrency before, you're sure to have received at least a couple ads about Bitcoin casinos, Bitcoin gambling and Bitcoin betting and everything associated with it.

You may be thinking where these platforms are getting their marketing budget to be so fast to react to your search history. Well, the answer to that is Bitcoin HODLers themselves.

Although casinos are quite a taboo topic and aren't necessarily considered as "morally good" companies, there are still some advantages that people are able to find with them, especially when it comes to Bitcoin.

For example, let's take a look at Finland. The country used to have quite a strict regulation of Bitcoin, which meant that almost everybody had to disclose their identity, the amount of BTC they had and pretty much forfeit all of the features of the blockchain.

Around the same time, Finland had a similar approach to gambling, but in a much more "sinister way". All gambling was done under the supervision of the government, so nobody really wanted to risk their identity being disclosed so easily.

Therefore, when they heard the words "hedelmäpelit netissä", which means "online slot games" in Finnish marketed to them it was immediately a swarm to get an account as fast as possible. However, this was only the beginning. These online platforms quickly saw the situation with Bitcoin in the country and started offering a way to avoid government surveillance. People would be able to deposit fiat money on the platform, exchange it for BTC, spend a bit on the platform and then be able to withdraw on any hot or cold wallet.

Soon enough, cryptocurrency became synonymous with online casinos in the country and is still considered as one to this day.

Solid Assets 

Surprisingly, many BTC HODLers have chosen solid assets over virtual ones for saving their money. Solid, or hard assets, are physical, valuable items or properties, such as real estate, land, gold, silver, and other precious metals. 

Real estate is one of the most widespread long-term investments or deposit options around the world and BTC HODLers are aware of its benefits. Estates, especially in well-established urban areas in Europe, the United States and Australia maintain their price under almost any circumstances. Thus, a soaring number of people spend their savings on London townhouses and New York apartments. 

And Everything Else 

Notable recent trends include the online gambling industry and solid assets. Yet, bitcoin HODLers deposit their resources in almost every field that is stable and reliable. Surprisingly, not many crypto enthusiasts choose stocks due to their poor reputation in this decade. This mainly is caused by the predominantly young demographics of crypto users who are afraid that the 2008 global financial crisis might repeat itself not long from the disaster.