Both the bitcoins and gold are commodities susceptible to significant fluctuations in price. The price of a bitcoin has grown over the years. Since being introduced in 2009, its value has risen to over $900 US dollars. This means the bitcoin has obtained more value than gold. There are many websites designed to take advantage of the bitcoin as a viable investment. There are major differences between the two. Gold is a physical commodity and the bitcoin is digital.

Bitcoin
This is the world’s first currency to be decentralized. It is virtual money. The public has been able to purchase the bitcoin for the past seven years. It enables individuals in the online community to mine new bitcoins. This requires open-source software to solve very complicated mathematical equations. According to experts, the total amount of bitcoins that able to be mined is limited to a little over 20 billion. A bitcoin has a record of transactions between various addresses, and this is how it’s represented. Letters and number that are generated in random sequences to make up a bitcoin address. All those who mine bitcoins must confirm their transactions.

Gold
The value of gold is in it being scarce as well as serving an industrial purpose. It is durable and not able to be counterfeit. Gold must be insured, guarded, and the integrity of it must be evaluated. The value of gold is decreased when it is mixed with other types of metals. Should gold be moved across an international boarder, it must be declared to the host country prior to its entry. Should someone want to purchase something with gold, it must first be converted into currency.

Advantages Of Gold

Many financial experts believe an investor should have gold in their investment portfolio as a hedge against economic disaster. This could be some type of economic hyperinflation or even collapse. It is also believed that having gold will protect the investor against any uncontrolled actions by a government. A person is also able to regularly invest in small amounts of gold and grow their investment as needed.

Disadvantages of Gold
Precious metals can be subject to confiscation by the government. This has happened throughout history. The value of gold is also vulnerable to market manipulation when there is a need to increase the value of paper money. The increase in the value of gold over time is usually nominal.

Advantage of Bitcoin

There is no need to know where a bitcoin came from. Its entire transaction history is carried by each coin. The buyer will know exactly where the bitcoin has been used. Selling and purchasing gold can take time. From the purchase to the investor having the metal could take days. It is possible for a person to purchase millions of dollars worth of bitcoins within seconds. Only the sender and receiver need to know the identity of the other. These sales can easily take place between any locations in the world.

Disadvantages Of Bitcoin
The bitcoin is crowdsourced. This means its value is based on community participation. A bitcoin does not have a buyer or seller’s name or physical address or any identifying information required for a transaction. This had made the bitcoin very important to those in the black market. There have been websites which sold millions of dollars worth of illicit goods and drugs. They only accepted bitcoins for payment.

The Decision
The value of gold has been part of building and having wealth for thousands of years. It has never had to compete with cryptocurrency until recently. Bitcoins provides a number of advantages to investors. The possibilities of gold are well-known, but the potential for bitcoins may have yet to be realized.