I find that people often want to start investing (in shares or in crypto) following a news item that talks about skyrocketing values. The news item usually gives headline figures showing how much someone has made or could have made in a particular market.

Most of the time the changes in crypto are much faster and much more extreme than in shares, so I this is the most interesting case.

Bitcoin is an good example. It is now close to its all time high (ATH) and so does that mean that I have missed my chance to invest?

No.

The price of Bitcoin (in US$) goes down as well as up so there is always likely to be the chance to make money. I am only talking about the simplest of trades, buying or selling at the current moment (spot).

All through Bitcoin’s history it has had ATH values, all of which have later been surpassed. There are well known patterns of price change, none of which is perfectly predictable but all of which are sure to happen.

One of the easiest to follow is the phrase “pump and dump”, where buyers (usually automated traders) keep on buying in a rising market, thereby pushing the price higher and higher. While it is rising you can sell at any time and make a profit. After a period of time, there will be a big sell off (dumping), where the price drops very fast.

So it is never too late to invest, just make sure that you sell before the next dump. By the way, choosing the right moment is easier said than done.