The first time you read “HODL” when researching cryptocurrencies, it causes you to stop reading.
“Is it a misspelling?”
Well, Yes! – at least it was mistyped originally. Now HODL has spawned a life of its own. It has evolved to represent a long-term trading strategy and philosophy for crypto investors.
With the launch of their latest campaign, eToro have released – HODL, featuring Kristian Nairn. So we thought it would be a good idea to explain this crypto slang term, and who better than Kristian Nairn himself to explain:
History Of HODL
HODL has become an acronym (or even backronym) for “hold on for dear life”, meaning that even when investors are in the deep red with their cryptos, they should not buckle under pressure and sell, driven by the belief that they will, ultimately, reap great rewards, once mass adoption has been achieved.
The origin of HODL can be traced back to December 18, 2013, and a legendary, whiskey-fuelled rant on Bitcoin Forum by someone calling themselves GameKyuubi.
40% Slump
To provide context, just before the series of poorly written posts were typed – or mistyped – the price of bitcoin had fallen almost 40 per cent, from $716 to $438 in 24 hours, according to CoinDesk.
The pullback was likely to have been triggered by reports of a crackdown on the original crypto in China. GameKyuubi made clear his or her intentions.
“I AM HODLING,” GameKyuubi wrote, before going on to explain a fair amount of whiskey had been consumed and the reason for “HODLING”.
Almost immediately, the funny series of Bitcoin Forum posts were transformed into internet memes, with references to fighting films 300 and Braveheart being especially popular.
More Than A Meme: HODL As A Strategy
The memes helped lift HODL from a mistyped “hold” to a widely adopted slang term and trading strategy used in the cryptocurrency community.
Quartz heralded it as one of the most important terms in crypto culture in 2017, describing it as a determination to “stay invested in bitcoin and not to capitulate in the face of plunging prices”.
eToro Crypto Funds
In addition to the ability to trade individual cryptocurrencies, eToro also operate a number of cryptocurrency funds, designed to make holding a basket of token much simpler. The firm have been at the forefront of crypto trading, seeing huge opportunities both for the technology, but also for traders.
They remain a great choice for anyone looking to buy and sell crypto and speculate on price movements.