Investing in Blockchain: 5 Best Blockchain Stocks to Buy in 2021
The significant increases in the bitcoin-to-USD exchange rate are investors' primary attraction to the blockchain and cryptocurrency stock market. Investing in blockchain stocks is an avenue for investors to cash in on this innovative technology.
The term blockchain encompasses a distributed ledger system applied in many industries, from healthcare and fintech to even transportation. In other words, blockchain technology improves business operations.
What is a Blockchain stock?
This breakthrough distributed ledger technology is applied in different forms. Blockchain technology will be increasingly implemented across more industries. This is why top businesspeople, economists, investors, and technology experts are bullish on the prospects of this new-ish technology, and so should you.
The winter of 2018 saw blockchain technology take a slump. Still, the next year, it regained momentum largely thanks to IBM (NYSE:IBM), Maersk (CPH:MAERSK-B), Starbucks (NYSE:SBUX), and Walmart (NYSE:WMT) integrating transparency software and supply chain solutions into their business.
Bitcoin started 2019 at $3,500, but a buy order of $100 million meant on April 1 of the same year saw the cryptocurrency rise to $13,000 by June. Since then, bitcoin hasn't looked back.
How do you invest in Blockchain 2021?
At the time of writing this, one bitcoin (1 BTC) is now worth more than $18,000. With the increasing demand for bitcoin and the integration of blockchain technology in several industries, blockchain stocks prices will continue to soar. It is therefore projected that blockchain will be the investment of the 2020 decade.
Several big names such as IBM and Intel are investing heavily in this technology. Fortunately, investing in blockchain stocks is straightforward. Investment opportunities abound, some of which include the following:
- Blockchain penny stocks.
- Stockpiling cryptocurrency.
- Angel investments.
- Pure investment in blockchain tech.
To keep your risks minimal, you can invest in the blockchain stocks of financial services companies that look to improve their services with blockchain. Alternatively, if you can tolerate higher risks, you are better off dipping your feet in opportunities in pure blockchain technology.
What are the best blockchain stocks to invest in 2021?
1. CME Group (CME)
CME Group became prominent in 2017 December when they launched their bitcoin futures. However, investors wouldn't mind because the offering is inconsequential regarding CME's overall trade operations.
This is thanks to the fact that CME Group is the largest futures and options exchange globally. The company offers derivate securities for foreign exchange, stocks, and indexes.
CME Group is the only exchange for creating a market for bitcoin futures contracts and remains the most popular destination for buying bitcoin futures.
Regarding the cryptocurrency stock market, another strong incentive to invest in CME blockchain stocks is that CME Group gets commissions for all of its exchanges' transactions. Therefore, it rises as cryptocurrency volatility and prices go up.
Investors will sleep better at night, knowing that the CME Group is fully regulated. Regulation provides investors a legal way to speculate bitcoin prices.
2. IBM (NYSE:IBM)
International Business Machines Corp (IBM) has been at the forefront of technology from the beginning, and it shows no signs of wanting to step back. The firm has seen better days for sure, but the future looks bright.
Firstly, IMB has always had big ideas. For now, many investors view blockchain as only about cryptocurrencies, but they will eventually appreciate the potential of this technology in solving complex, industry, and real-life problems.
For example, IBM's BaaS (blockchain as a service) offering, which helps clients to store their transactions securely using blockchain technology. The firm manages this BaaS offering using its native Cloud protocol.
We have also confirmed that the firm is presently developing more than five hundred projects on blockchain, one of which is the IBM Food Trust platform.
Besides its own projects, IBM has also currently secured thousands of unique blockchain patents alone that can bring in billions of dollars. The company has dealt with organizations to adopt blockchain technology in their present operational frameworks.
Moreover, IBM is doing its part in ensuring that people appreciate blockchain and its investments come excel. Forbes gave IBM a thumbs-up recently for their dedication to informing people about blockchain.
IBM blockchain stocks will only see a rise in 2021, and that's why it's one of the top blockchain stocks to pick up. However, consider it a long-term buy.
3. Square (SQ)
While other top blockchain guns are dissociating themselves from the crypto, these coins are the reason Square is in the picture. So, the company embraces the cryptocurrency stock market. The fintech giant, Square, should be another long-term buy for blockchain investors.
Square's intuitive payment processors make it possible for small businesses to go shoulder-to-shoulder with more established organizations. It provides an accounting ecosystem for businesspersons to simplify their transactional information and concentrate on business growth.
These make Square's blockchain stocks attractive to investors. It seemed questionable when the company integrated crypto payments into its platform and put together its Square Crypto team.
Today, Square's Cash App is among the most popular bitcoin exchanges, with revenue soaring 1,000%, $1.63 billion in Q3 2020. Square now also processes over $100 billion worth of transactions yearly.
I firmly believe that Square blockchain stock is one of the best blockchain stocks to invest in. The US Patent and Trademark Office thinks the same, acknowledging that Square is a new network that enables seamless crypto-to-fiat transactions.
4. Mastercard (MA)
Mastercard is a big name in traditional banking, so it might look strange to list Mastercard among the best blockchain stocks to invest in 2021. However, what many don't know is that the company is looking to adopt blockchain into its operations to improve its transactions and reduce transfer costs.
Being the fintech Titan, Mastercard is a great place to be a leading light in the ongoing blockchain revolution. Integrating blockchain does Mastercard tons of good because it stands to lose around $23 billion to customer fraud and similar schemes, and blockchain tech will checkmate this.
Mastercard wants to partner with businesses in the cryptocurrency space. In July 2020, Wirex became the first cryptocurrency platform allowed to issue its card to its customers.
These Mastercard partnerships will spur finance sector companies to continue implementing cryptocurrency into the global banking system. If you're looking to invest in blockchain stock, Mastercard should be at the top of your list.
5. NVIDIA (NVDA)
First of all, blockchain technology would be meaningless without a reliable, large-scale peer-to-peer network. All the innovations linked with this piece of tech wouldn't work without the necessary hardware to make it possible.
When it comes to processors for vital operations such as cryptocurrency mining and solving complex algorithms for verifying data, Nvidia's graphical processing units (GPUs) come to mind. Nvidia leads the way thanks to its specialized mining GPUs.
Nvidia is presently the largest manufacturer of GPUs globally and is even planting roots in other niches, such as AI, autonomous transportation, and the internet of things (IoT), all based on blockchain technology.
The same way Nvidia's mining GPUs bolstered its stock in the past, I believe it will continue attracting young investors in 2021. Nvidia aims to boost the sustainability of cryptocurrency mining. Not only will this benefit the entire industry, but it will also make the NVDA stock more valuable than ever moving forward.
Notable mentions
- Docusign (DOCU)
- Amazon (AMZN)
- Bank of America (BAC)
- Alibaba (BABA)
- Fujitsu (FJTSY)
- Microsoft (MSFT)
