Top U.S. bank JPMorgan says investors are better off with Ethereum

US banking giant JPMorgan has more faith in leading smart contract platform Ethereum. In fact, it calls it a “better bet” than Bitcoin (BTC) in this market cycle.

Here’s a quick look: Ethereum (ETH) is hitting all new peaks, climbing more than $4,500 for the first time on November 2. Analysts say new highs are in the offing.

On Thursday, the Bank of England said that interest rates would have to increase over the coming weeks or months. The Fed will reportedly start tapering its $120 billion a month budget on bond acquisitions. But that’s another story.

Ethereum is making a lot of noise these days, and mostly for good reasons.

JPMorgan market observers leaning toward Ether

Analysts at JPMorgan say Ethereum has what it takes to be the more ideal long-term bet as environmental issues are becoming more of a topic among investors.

The downward pressure being placed on Bitcoin (BTC) not to mention typical inflation hedges like the precious metal gold make Ethereum “a more appealing piece of investment.”

The reason? Its value is mainly derived from its high volume of decentralized apps and use cases.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, JPMorgan challenged the popular $100,000 Bitcoin price target for the fourth quarter this year, citing too much current volatility in the markets.

Investors worry pumping BTC up?

From the bank’s viewpoint, the price of bitcoin — the world’s most expensive crypto — has been on the rise all because of investors’ jitters over mounting inflation in the US.

Both Bitcoin and Ethereum have been floating near their previous all-time highs over the past seven days.

Currently, Bitcoin is trading at $61,241, figures from CoinGecko show, while Ethereum — the world’s second-biggest crypto — is nestled right above its previous all-time peak, trading at $4,498. 

On DeFi, ether and NFTs

The ethereum network is at the heart of the realm of decentralized finance (DeFi), a burgeoning industry that leverages crypto technology to perform traditional financial functions such as lending and trading.

Additionally, it is also at the core of non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, which are collectible digital items that are traded and secured by crypto technology.

Investors, according to JPMorgan, may do better by keeping onto their Ether. That’s because it has a wider range of applications than Bitcoin, which means that interest in crypto will continue to grow.

Image courtesy of Cointelegraph News/YouTube

Source: https://bitcoinerx.com/blockchain/top-u-s-bank-jpmorgan-says-investors-are-better-off-with-ethereum/