The image of two-year-old Chloe Clem making a disapproving face was auctioned in cryptocurrency.
We set the stage for our formal econometric analysis by providing some graphical evidence. For example, in Figure 1, we see a close mapping of the prices of Bitcoin and Ethereum with their respective computing power values. Moreover, in Figure 2, we observe an even stronger mapping of the prices of Bitcoin and Ethereum with their respective network values. Interestingly, these graphs also show that when prices significantly exceed the trend in computing power or network (as was the case in late 2017), prices eventually fall and trace the trend in fundamentals. The convergence of prices to the trend with fundamentals suggests that fundamentals are the ultimate, long-run determinants of prices.

But classifying crypto as an investment is complicated, too. It doesn’t quite fit the mold of a traditional stock or bond, and while cryptocurrencies do share characteristics of commodities like gold — they can be bought and sold for cash and as derivatives based on expected future value — they have no inherent physical value or use.
The difference is that stellar wants to target the unbanked, whereas Ripple works mostly with global banks to transfer money among clients at very low cost. Ripple holds all the cards in this corner of the crypto market.