Do you dream of becoming a Bitcoin billionaire? A brand new tool could be just what you need to make the best investment choices. Using detailed historical data across the past 14 months, Cryptocurrencies: Past, Present and Future makes cutting-edge predictions for the future of the top 10 virtual currencies.

Using an exclusive, handcrafted algorithm, this Cryptocurrency predictor feeds historical data on price, trade volume, market cap and online popularity through a variety of analytical tools, including a Recurrent Neural Network, to forecast the exact rise and fall of ten chart-topping cryptocurrencies.

The ten virtual currencies monitored within the piece include:

• Bitcoin
• Ethereum
• Ripple
• Bitcoin Cash
• Litecoin
• Cardano
• NEO
• Stellar
• EOS
• IOTA

If you’re concerned about being overwhelmed by numbers, all of the cryptocurrencies are explained in a handy, bitesize format. What’s more, the numerical information is displayed in easy-to-read data visualisations, allowing you to compare cryptocurrencies side-by-side.

Price: projected change from 11th March 2018 to 6th May 2018

Despite the value of cryptocurrencies being constantly on the move, the algorithm reveals that Bitcoin Cash will skyrocket by $1,247.73 per unit to $2,209.68 if it continues on its predicted path - so is definitely one to look at if you’re tempted to invest.

Similarly, Chinese-produced NEO looks another strong contender for most valuable currency in the near future, with a projected increase of 145%.

Ethereum, meanwhile, is highly encouraged to be avoided, since it is charted to lose the most value, falling by a staggering $237.79 per unit. It doesn’t have the biggest percentage drop, though. That dubious honour belongs to Stellar, which is predicted to fall a shocking 87% in the next two months.

Market Cap: projected change from 11th March 2018 to 6th May 2018

With Market Cap (Price multiplied by Circulating Supply), we’d expect the price to somewhat influence the projected value and percentage change. But what is even more interesting is how much changes in price influence the Market Cap.

As you would expect, Bitcoin Cash’s ceiling looks ready to rocket up by more than $20 billion to accommodate an increase in price - as we saw from the previous table. Similarly, NEO’s leap in unit value will be accompanied by the Market Cap expanding by an impressive 162%.

It’s more bad news for both Ethereum founder, Vitalik Buterin and Stellar creator Jed McCaleb though - as Ethereum’s overall cap is projected to plummet by $26 billion to reflect the drop in price, along with Stellar bottoming out with a devastating 90% fall.

Online Popularity: projected change from 11th March 2018 to 6th May 2018

It’s not all market based, however. A detailed exploration of Google Trends data makes it possible to assess the Online Popularity of each cryptocurrency.

This time round, NEO has pipped Bitcoin Cash to the post with the highest search volume both historically and projected in the future, topping even the most well known of cryptocurrencies at a predicted 268% interest and suggesting a rapidly growing interest. On the other hand, IOTA has seen the largest percentage drop off, slated to fall by 53% over the next few months - which might be emblematic of the smaller cryptocurrencies catching the eye but then fizzling out shortly after.

Trade Volume: projected change from 11th March 2018 to 6th May 2018

Finally, Trade Volume projections reveal that Bitcoin (not Bitcoin Cash) is on a path to increase its projected value by a whopping $1.4 billion - the highest of all of the cryptocurrencies.

Though it may not have topped the chart this time round, Bitcoin Cash is still keeping up its high hopes across the board with a promising projection of increasing its volume by more than $1.3 billion by May - a 300% increase. Rounding off the success stories is fan favourites NEO, their trade volume set to soar by a remarkable 563% percentage increase - something we’re sure that the NEO team and potential investors will be thrilled by.

On a less happy note, however, Ethereum still appears set to bomb with a forecasted volume drop of $118 million - the biggest fall of any listed competitor.

More bad news is set for Stellar too, with a -67% percentage drop in trade volume predicted on the horizon. This follows a string of percentage decreases for Stellar. Of course we are speculating, but this could be due to the accessibility of this particular cryptocurrency as it cannot be bought via credit card and can only be obtained through a cryptocurrency exchange - quite a risky move if you ask us!

(Source: Cryptocurrenciesprediction)

With the explosion of cryptocurrencies over recent years, many businesses and start-ups are turning to Initial Coin Offerings, or ICOs, to raise money to get their projects up and running. This week Finance Monthly gets the lowdown on ICO management from Dr. Moritz Kurtz, CEO & Co-Founder of Acorn Collective, clarifying the point, purpose and benefits of launching an ICO.

In an ICO campaign, early backers of the venture buy a percentage of the cryptocurrency, often based on one of the existing public blockchains, in the form of tokens created by the company they are supporting.

An ICO can theoretically be used to fund any project or product in any category, however, before an ICO is launched it needs to clarify:

• The concept
• The token model
• Funding required
• Next stages if funded

With so many ICOs in the marketplace you must lay out your concept in detail before launching an ICO. This way contributors can see the utility of your token, and understand what they are buying into. It also makes token holders feel part of the process of creating a new technology, platform or product.

Who should run an ICO?

Whilst any product or project CAN launch an ICO, that does not mean anyone SHOULD. ICO’s have become a popular funding model with start-ups looking to bypass the traditional, and more rigorous, process of gaining funds via venture capital backing.

Although technically an ICO model can be used to fund anything, it is important to consider:

• The necessity of the blockchain
• What you want to achieve
• Utility of your token: What real-world utility will your token have?
• Potential for regulation: Currently, ICOs are largely unregulated, but that does not mean they will be in the future. As the ICO market grows, many countries plan to impose stricter regulations.

ICO for Crowdfunding

An ICO could be greatly beneficial for the crowdfunding space, as it allows for the following:

• Removes transaction and platform fees: Current platforms charge 5-10% in fees.
• Be accessible to all: Without the same commercial pressures as traditional crowdfunding platforms, an ICO-funded platform would be able to accept any legal project in any category and country.
• Integrated post-campaign marketplace: The token economy created through ICO funding means the platform could have an integrated post-campaign marketplace, alongside reasonably priced campaign support services for founders.

Essentially, an ICO can be used to ‘crowdfund crowdfunding’.

How is an ICO mutually beneficial?

Successful ICOs benefit both backers of the venture and those relying on the funds it provides.

The backers can contribute towards a product or project at an early stage, thus benefitting from the increased demand for the token as utility increases. Meanwhile, projects can receive early funding to build their business venture without having to give away equity in the company.

Things to think about

Although launching an ICO can hold great promise for start-ups, it’s not all plain sailing.

Getting the funds can be tricky. When launching an ICO you must generate interest from contributors to encourage them to buy your tokens which, in a crowded marketplace, can be challenging. Not getting enough funds is one of the biggest risks. Not meeting the minimum target means the funds are returned to the token holders and the ICO is deemed as having failed.

An ICO is a great way of raising funding for the right projects in certain industries, but is by no means an easy solution. The ICO world is currently saturated with projects and competition for funding is intense. Making sure you have a viable and sustainable idea that requires blockchain is a good start. From then on, a successful ICO requires all the same focus on marketing and community building as any other form of fundraising.