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Since the birth of the internet, attempts have been made at introducing digital currencies that can be used faster and more reliable than traditional ones. Many have failed to outlast the passage of time, but those failings were lessons taken to heart. And so, digital currencies took its next step further when Bitcoin was introduced. It proved to be successful enough that nearly every digital currencies that were created after have emulated or improved some of its features and aspects in one form or another. But what of these currencies called "altcoins"? Will they content themselves on being Bitcoin's second fiddle? Or will they become more utilized to the point where Bitcoin's actual use becomes marginal? Arguments on Creating Altcoins Bitcoin, despite its popularity and widespread use, has its own drawbacks, something that the cryptocurrency community has long acknowledged. One of its most scathing weaknesses is its transaction speed, with the size limit of only 1MB per block. This has been much argued upon by its early proponents, which has resulted in the creation of Bitcoin's hard forks. Some entities also took it upon themselves to offer altcoins that provide faster transaction speeds. Related to this is Bitcoin's use as a mode of payment. Due to limits on its transaction speed, various altcoins have been offered over time that allows wider acceptance and faster transactions, to the ideal point where these coins can compete with other centralized government-owned systems like credit cards. The Effects of ICO With Bitcoin's various negative traits pointed out here and there, various attempts have been made at introducing altcoins that can solve these issues. The most prolific time for these attempts was during the ICO boom of 2017. With ICO, enterprising entities can obtain funding to help in the creation of new altcoins. Or so it was, had not for some disturbing incidents. The ICO craze provides some appaling stories of investors becoming disillusioned after being frauded. Indeed, there were many reports of most ICO projects labeled as scams. This in turn has implicitly made ICO become deridedly synonymous to scam projects. The resulting negative feedback can thus prove to be a hindrance for legitimate ICO projects today. Bitcoin Pushes Back Despite weaknesses being pointed out, and the core Bitcoin code itself can be difficult to update without serious repercussions, some projects that may supplement Bitcoin's usability itself without altering its code were created. For an example, Lightning Network offers scalability solutions to Bitcoin. A SegWit soft fork, this is currently in the development phase. If fully implemented in the future, this may radically change the current status quo for altcoin usage, something that the developers of altcoins should watch out for. Future Prospects Any future attempts at new altcoin creation will be met with extreme difficulty, both from the feedback of scam projects and the stiff competition among current existing altcoins. For new altcoins to succeed, they need to exceed those negative expectations and offer some groundbreaking features not present today in others. This may also hold true for countries that contemplate on making their own crypto-based digital currencies. For current existing altcoins, there may be a need to step up their game to keep up to cryptocurrency users' demands. In the case of Ethereum, with their upcoming 2.0 updated version, it is expected that this will help deal with its networks' congestion due to the DeFi craze. Other altcoins may follow suit to ensure that they will not fall behind. Whatever may happen in the future should Bitcoin ever fade away, the altcoins must be able to stand their ground in the financial world. Especially if they somehow manage to usurp Bitcoin's position as the current gold standard of cryptocurrencies today.

Price crash. Bitcoins going zero in value. People losing interest in crypto due to lowering prices. Indeed, speculations about cryptocurrencies losing value has flooded the internet world over the years, and we have a history of crypto markets tumbling down, but still, crypto is still pretty much alive and kicking. And some people took it as an opportunity to gain profits despite the negative feedback. Remember the Mt. Gox incident of 2014? When the exchange took its unamusing and pitiful downfall, prices crashed, crypto users were shocked and angry, and long-time critics and disbelievers were having a field day. But prices not only eventually recovered, they also have increased as well, a stark defiance of what doomsayers have predicted for the end of crypto. Or the time when in 2017, Bitcoins dipped in September when China cracked down on ICO's and exchanges? Not only did Bitcoin's prices nearly doubled from $2,900 to $5,600 after its aftermath, it was only a scant few more months before the infamous $17,000+ Bitcoin bullrun began. And the rest was history. And now in 2020, we have another history in the making: crypto prices came crashing down as the COVID-19 pandemic rages across the continents. And already we are seeing signs of history repeating itself again as crypto prices starts recovering and anticipating Bitcoin's next halving this year. What did all these events, and many more, have in common? Some people bought crypto when prices crashed, and has profited handsomely for it. Most seasoned crypto users know that one can gain profits from bullruns, but not everyone knows that price crashes can be as good as bullruns for profiting as well. One can wait for prices to dip as far low as it can, and buy coins while they're cheap in the hope that it will soon rise in price due to demand for cheaper coins rising. Even if one sells the cheaper coins he bought before during the price crash, at the price of the time before the crash happened and that particular coin has recovered or even got more expensive, can be considered profitable. Taking the recent price dip of Bitcoins due to COVID-19 as an example, it has briefly touched $10,000 earlier this year, and its price crashed down to around ~$4,000. Some didn't lose heart and bought Bitcoins during those times, and now Bitcoins has steadily risen to more than $7,000 as of April 9. Those that bought Bitcoins back when it was cheaper can now profit from it if they sell now, if they want to. But most likely, they'll hodl it while waiting for the next halving, which is another story that will soon unfold. Some people might have an inkling that it doesn't always work that way, and they are justified in thinking so. So long as major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and the top 10 altcoins are supported by its users, whenever there is a price dip, it will almost always recover. But not every coins are so lucky. If one takes Bitcoin Cash, a hard fork of Bitcoin, as an example, it has yet to recover from the higher prices it has enjoyed in its earlier days. Excluding that, there are many more tales of altcoins and (legit) ICO's having their prices crashed never being able to recover, and have ended up as another casualty in the ever-growing number inside the All Time List of Shitcoins. So in the end, it still comes down to investing and trading at the right time and with the right coins. Caution is advised for the more questionable coins. So next time, do not think quickly of prices crashing as a sign of the end times for crypto. Think of it as an opportunity instead. The old saying "Every cloud has a silver lining" works here.