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Contracts, transactions, and the records of them are among the defining structures in our economic, legal, and political systems. They protect assets and set organizational boundaries. They establish and verify identities and chronicle events. They govern interactions among nations, organizations, communities, and individuals. They guide managerial and social action. And yet these critical tools and the bureaucracies formed to manage them have not kept up with the economy’s digital transformation. They’re like a rush-hour gridlock trapping a Formula 1 race car. In a digital world, the way we regulate and maintain administrative control has to change.

Blockchain promises to solve this problem. The technology at the heart of bitcoin and other virtual currencies, blockchain is an open, distributed ledger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way. The ledger itself can also be programmed to trigger transactions automatically. (See the sidebar “How Blockchain Works.”)

With blockchain, we can imagine a world in which contracts are embedded in digital code and stored in transparent, shared databases, where they are protected from deletion, tampering, and revision. In this world every agreement, every process, every task, and every payment would have a digital record and signature that could be identified, validated, stored, and shared. Intermediaries like lawyers, brokers, and bankers might no longer be necessary. Individuals, organizations, machines, and algorithms would freely transact and interact with one another with little friction. This is the immense potential of blockchain.

Indeed, virtually everyone has heard the claim that blockchain will revolutionize business and redefine companies and economies. Although we share the enthusiasm for its potential, we worry about the hype. It’s not just security issues (such as the collapse of one bitcoin exchange and the more recent hacks of others) that concern us. Our experience studying technological innovation tells us that if there’s to be a blockchain revolution, many barriers—technological, governance, organizational, and even societal—will have to fall. It would be a mistake to rush headlong into blockchain innovation without understanding how it is likely to take hold.

True blockchain-led transformation of business and government, we believe, is still many years away. That’s because blockchain is not a “disruptive” technology, which can attack a traditional business model with a lower-cost solution and overtake incumbent firms quickly. Blockchain is a foundational technology: It has the potential to create new foundations for our economic and social systems. But while the impact will be enormous, it will take decades for blockchain to seep into our economic and social infrastructure. The process of adoption will be gradual and steady, not sudden, as waves of technological and institutional change gain momentum. That insight and its strategic implications are what we’ll explore in this article.

Patterns of Technology Adoption

Before jumping into blockchain strategy and investment, let’s reflect on what we know about technology adoption and, in particular, the transformation process typical of other foundational technologies. One of the most relevant examples is distributed computer networking technology, seen in the adoption of TCP/IP (transmission control protocol/internet protocol), which laid the groundwork for the development of the internet.

Introduced in , TCP/IP first gained traction in a single-use case: as the basis for e-mail among the researchers on ARPAnet, the U.S. Department of Defense precursor to the commercial internet. Before TCP/IP, telecommunications architecture was based on “circuit switching,” in which connections between two parties or machines had to be preestablished and sustained throughout an exchange. To ensure that any two nodes could communicate, telecom service providers and equipment manufacturers had invested billions in building dedicated lines.

TCP/IP turned that model on its head. The new protocol transmitted information by digitizing it and breaking it up into very small packets, each including address information. Once released into the network, the packets could take any route to the recipient. Smart sending and receiving nodes at the network’s edges could disassemble and reassemble the packets and interpret the encoded data. There was no need for dedicated private lines or massive infrastructure. TCP/IP created an open, shared public network without any central authority or party responsible for its maintenance and improvement.

Traditional telecommunications and computing sectors looked on TCP/IP with skepticism. Few imagined that robust data, messaging, voice, and video connections could be established on the new architecture or that the associated system could be secure and scale up. But during the late s and s, a growing number of firms, such as Sun, NeXT, Hewlett-Packard, and Silicon Graphics, used TCP/IP, in part to create localized private networks within organizations. To do so, they developed building blocks and tools that broadened its use beyond e-mail, gradually replacing more-traditional local network technologies and standards. As organizations adopted these building blocks and tools, they saw dramatic gains in productivity.

TCP/IP burst into broad public use with the advent of the World Wide Web in the mids. New technology companies quickly emerged to provide the “plumbing”—the hardware, software, and services needed to connect to the now-public network and exchange information. Netscape commercialized browsers, web servers, and other tools and components that aided the development and adoption of internet services and applications. Sun drove the development of Java, the application-programming language. As information on the web grew exponentially, Infoseek, Excite, AltaVista, and Yahoo were born to guide users around it.

Once this basic infrastructure gained critical mass, a new generation of companies took advantage of low-cost connectivity by creating internet services that were compelling substitutes for existing businesses. CNET moved news online. Amazon offered more books for sale than any bookshop. Priceline and Expedia made it easier to buy airline tickets and brought unprecedented transparency to the process. The ability of these newcomers to get extensive reach at relatively low cost put significant pressure on traditional businesses like newspapers and brick-and-mortar retailers.

Relying on broad internet connectivity, the next wave of companies created novel, transformative applications that fundamentally changed the way businesses created and captured value. These companies were built on a new peer-to-peer architecture and generated value by coordinating distributed networks of users. Think of how eBay changed online retail through auctions, Napster changed the music industry, Skype changed telecommunications, and Google, which exploited user-generated links to provide more relevant results, changed web search.

Ultimately, it took more than 30 years for TCP/IP to move through all the phases—single use, localized use, substitution, and transformation—and reshape the economy. Today more than half the world’s most valuable public companies have internet-driven, platform-based business models. The very foundations of our economy have changed. Physical scale and unique intellectual property no longer confer unbeatable advantages; increasingly, the economic leaders are enterprises that act as “keystones,” proactively organizing, influencing, and coordinating widespread networks of communities, users, and organizations.

The New Architecture

Blockchain—a peer-to-peer network that sits on top of the internet—was introduced in October as part of a proposal for bitcoin, a virtual currency system that eschewed a central authority for issuing currency, transferring ownership, and confirming transactions. Bitcoin is the first application of blockchain technology.

The parallels between blockchain and TCP/IP are clear. Just as e-mail enabled bilateral messaging, bitcoin enables bilateral financial transactions. The development and maintenance of blockchain is open, distributed, and shared—just like TCP/IP’s. A team of volunteers around the world maintains the core software. And just like e-mail, bitcoin first caught on with an enthusiastic but relatively small community.

TCP/IP unlocked new economic value by dramatically lowering the cost of connections. Similarly, blockchain could dramatically reduce the cost of transactions. It has the potential to become the system of record for all transactions. If that happens, the economy will once again undergo a radical shift, as new, blockchain-based sources of influence and control emerge.

Consider how business works now. Keeping ongoing records of transactions is a core function of any business. Those records track past actions and performance and guide planning for the future. They provide a view not only of how the organization works internally but also of the organization’s outside relationships. Every organization keeps its own records, and they’re private. Many organizations have no master ledger of all their activities; instead records are distributed across internal units and functions. The problem is, reconciling transactions across individual and private ledgers takes a lot of time and is prone to error.

For example, a typical stock transaction can be executed within microseconds, often without human intervention. However, the settlement—the ownership transfer of the stock—can take as long as a week. That’s because the parties have no access to each other’s ledgers and can’t automatically verify that the assets are in fact owned and can be transferred. Instead a series of intermediaries act as guarantors of assets as the record of the transaction traverses organizations and the ledgers are individually updated.

In a blockchain system, the ledger is replicated in a large number of identical databases, each hosted and maintained by an interested party. When changes are entered in one copy, all the other copies are simultaneously updated. So as transactions occur, records of the value and assets exchanged are permanently entered in all ledgers. There is no need for third-party intermediaries to verify or transfer ownership. If a stock transaction took place on a blockchain-based system, it would be settled within seconds, securely and verifiably. (The infamous hacks that have hit bitcoin exchanges exposed weaknesses not in the blockchain itself but in separate systems linked to parties using the blockchain.)

A Framework for Blockchain Adoption

If bitcoin is like early e-mail, is blockchain decades from reaching its full potential? In our view the answer is a qualified yes. We can’t predict exactly how many years the transformation will take, but we can guess which kinds of applications will gain traction first and how blockchain’s broad acceptance will eventually come about.

In our analysis, history suggests that two dimensions affect how a foundational technology and its business use cases evolve. The first is novelty—the degree to which an application is new to the world. The more novel it is, the more effort will be required to ensure that users understand what problems it solves. The second dimension is complexity, represented by the level of ecosystem coordination involved—the number and diversity of parties that need to work together to produce value with the technology. For example, a social network with just one member is of little use; a social network is worthwhile only when many of your own connections have signed on to it. Other users of the application must be brought on board to generate value for all participants. The same will be true for many blockchain applications. And, as the scale and impact of those applications increase, their adoption will require significant institutional change.

We’ve developed a framework that maps innovations against these two contextual dimensions, dividing them into quadrants. (See the exhibit “How Foundational Technologies Take Hold.”) Each quadrant represents a stage of technology development. Identifying which one a blockchain innovation falls into will help executives understand the types of challenges it presents, the level of collaboration and consensus it needs, and the legislative and regulatory efforts it will require. The map will also suggest what kind of processes and infrastructure must be established to facilitate the innovation’s adoption. Managers can use it to assess the state of blockchain development in any industry, as well as to evaluate strategic investments in their own blockchain capabilities.

Single use.

In the first quadrant are low-novelty and low-coordination applications that create better, less costly, highly focused solutions. E-mail, a cheap alternative to phone calls, faxes, and snail mail, was a single-use application for TCP/IP (even though its value rose with the number of users). Bitcoin, too, falls into this quadrant. Even in its early days, bitcoin offered immediate value to the few people who used it simply as an alternative payment method. (You can think of it as a complex e-mail that transfers not just information but also actual value.) At the end of the value of bitcoin transactions was expected to hit $92 billion. That’s still a rounding error compared with the $ trillion in total global payments, but bitcoin is growing fast and increasingly important in contexts such as instant payments and foreign currency and asset trading, where the present financial system has limitations.

Localization.

The second quadrant comprises innovations that are relatively high in novelty but need only a limited number of users to create immediate value, so it’s still relatively easy to promote their adoption. If blockchain follows the path network technologies took in business, we can expect blockchain innovations to build on single-use applications to create local private networks on which multiple organizations are connected through a distributed ledger.

Much of the initial private blockchain-based development is taking place in the financial services sector, often within small networks of firms, so the coordination requirements are relatively modest. Nasdaq is working with www.oldyorkcellars.com, one of many blockchain infrastructure providers, to offer technology for processing and validating financial transactions. Bank of America, JPMorgan, the New York Stock Exchange, Fidelity Investments, and Standard Chartered are testing blockchain technology as a replacement for paper-based and manual transaction processing in such areas as trade finance, foreign exchange, cross-border settlement, and securities settlement. The Bank of Canada is testing a digital currency called CAD-coin for interbank transfers. We anticipate a proliferation of private blockchains that serve specific purposes for various industries.

Substitution.

The third quadrant contains applications that are relatively low in novelty because they build on existing single-use and localized applications, but are high in coordination needs because they involve broader and increasingly public uses. These innovations aim to replace entire ways of doing business. They face high barriers to adoption, however; not only do they require more coordination but the processes they hope to replace may be full-blown and deeply embedded within organizations and institutions. Examples of substitutes include cryptocurrencies—new, fully formed currency systems that have grown out of the simple bitcoin payment technology. The critical difference is that a cryptocurrency requires every party that does monetary transactions to adopt it, challenging governments and institutions that have long handled and overseen such transactions. Consumers also have to change their behavior and understand how to implement the new functional capability of the cryptocurrency.

A recent experiment at MIT highlights the challenges ahead for digital currency systems. In the MIT Bitcoin Club provided each of MIT’s 4, undergraduates with $ in bitcoin. Interestingly, 30% of the students did not even sign up for the free money, and 20% of the sign-ups converted the bitcoin to cash within a few weeks. Even the technically savvy had a tough time understanding how or where to use bitcoin.

One of the most ambitious substitute blockchain applications is Stellar, a nonprofit that aims to bring affordable financial services, including banking, micropayments, and remittances, to people who’ve never had access to them. Stellar offers its own virtual currency, lumens, and also allows users to retain on its system a range of assets, including other currencies, telephone minutes, and data credits. Stellar initially focused on Africa, particularly Nigeria, the largest economy there. It has seen significant adoption among its target population and proved its cost-effectiveness. But its future is by no means certain, because the ecosystem coordination challenges are high. Although grassroots adoption has demonstrated the viability of Stellar, to become a banking standard, it will need to influence government policy and persuade central banks and large organizations to use it. That could take years of concerted effort.

Transformation.

Into the last quadrant fall completely novel applications that, if successful, could change the very nature of economic, social, and political systems. They involve coordinating the activity of many actors and gaining institutional agreement on standards and processes. Their adoption will require major social, legal, and political change.

“Smart contracts” may be the most transformative blockchain application at the moment. These automate payments and the transfer of currency or other assets as negotiated conditions are met. For example, a smart contract might send a payment to a supplier as soon as a shipment is delivered. A firm could signal via blockchain that a particular good has been received—or the product could have GPS functionality, which would automatically log a location update that, in turn, triggered a payment. We’ve already seen a few early experiments with such self-executing contracts in the areas of venture funding, banking, and digital rights management.

The implications are fascinating. Firms are built on contracts, from incorporation to buyer-supplier relationships to employee relations. If contracts are automated, then what will happen to traditional firm structures, processes, and intermediaries like lawyers and accountants? And what about managers? Their roles would all radically change. Before we get too excited here, though, let’s remember that we are decades away from the widespread adoption of smart contracts. They cannot be effective, for instance, without institutional buy-in. A tremendous degree of coordination and clarity on how smart contracts are designed, verified, implemented, and enforced will be required. We believe the institutions responsible for those daunting tasks will take a long time to evolve. And the technology challenges—especially security—are daunting.

Guiding Your Approach to Blockchain Investment

How should executives think about blockchain for their own organizations? Our framework can help companies identify the right opportunities.

For most, the easiest place to start is single-use applications, which minimize risk because they aren’t new and involve little coordination with third parties. One strategy is to add bitcoin as a payment mechanism. The infrastructure and market for bitcoin are already well developed, and adopting the virtual currency will force a variety of functions, including IT, finance, accounting, sales, and marketing, to build blockchain capabilities. Another low-risk approach is to use blockchain internally as a database for applications like managing physical and digital assets, recording internal transactions, and verifying identities. This may be an especially useful solution for companies struggling to reconcile multiple internal databases. Testing out single-use applications will help organizations develop the skills they need for more-advanced applications. And thanks to the emergence of cloud-based blockchain services from both start-ups and large platforms like Amazon and Microsoft, experimentation is getting easier all the time.

Localized applications are a natural next step for companies. We’re seeing a lot of investment in private blockchain networks right now, and the projects involved seem poised for real short-term impact. Financial services companies, for example, are finding that the private blockchain networks they’ve set up with a limited number of trusted counterparties can significantly reduce transaction costs.

Organizations can also tackle specific problems in transactions across boundaries with localized applications. Companies are already using blockchain to track items through complex supply chains, for instance. This is happening in the diamond industry, where gems are being traced from mines to consumers. The technology for such experiments is now available off-the-shelf.

Developing substitute applications requires careful planning, since existing solutions may be difficult to dislodge. One way to go may be to focus on replacements that won’t require end users to change their behavior much but present alternatives to expensive or unattractive solutions. To get traction, substitutes must deliver functionality as good as a traditional solution’s and must be easy for the ecosystem to absorb and adopt. First Data’s foray into blockchain-based gift cards is a good example of a well-considered substitute. Retailers that offer them to consumers can dramatically lower costs per transaction and enhance security by using blockchain to track the flows of currency within accounts—without relying on external payment processors. These new gift cards even allow transfers of balances and transaction capability between merchants via the common ledger.

Transformative applications are still far away. But it makes sense to evaluate their possibilities now and invest in developing technology that can enable them. They will be most powerful when tied to a new business model in which the logic of value creation and capture departs from existing approaches. Such business models are hard to adopt but can unlock future growth for companies.

Consider how law firms will have to change to make smart contracts viable. They’ll need to develop new expertise in software and blockchain programming. They’ll probably also have to rethink their hourly payment model and entertain the idea of charging transaction or hosting fees for contracts, to name just two possible approaches. Whatever tack they take, executives must be sure they understand and have tested the business model implications before making any switch.

Transformative scenarios will take off last, but they will also deliver enormous value. Two areas where they could have a profound impact: large-scale public identity systems for such functions as passport control, and algorithm-driven decision making in the prevention of money laundering and in complex financial transactions that involve many parties. We expect these applications won’t reach broad adoption and critical mass for at least another decade and probably more.

Transformative applications will also give rise to new platform-level players that will coordinate and govern the new ecosystems. These will be the Googles and Facebooks of the next generation. It will require patience to realize such opportunities. Though it may be premature to start making significant investments in them now, developing the required foundations for them—tools and standards—is still worthwhile.

CONCLUSION

In addition to providing a good template for blockchain’s adoption, TCP/IP has most likely smoothed the way for it. TCP/IP has become ubiquitous, and blockchain applications are being built on top of the digital data, communication, and computation infrastructure, which lowers the cost of experimentation and will allow new use cases to emerge rapidly.

With our framework, executives can figure out where to start building their organizational capabilities for blockchain today. They need to ensure that their staffs learn about blockchain, to develop company-specific applications across the quadrants we’ve identified, and to invest in blockchain infrastructure.

But given the time horizons, barriers to adoption, and sheer complexity involved in getting to TCP/IP levels of acceptance, executives should think carefully about the risks involved in experimenting with blockchain. Clearly, starting small is a good way to develop the know-how to think bigger. But the level of investment should depend on the context of the company and the industry. Financial services companies are already well down the road to blockchain adoption. Manufacturing is not.

No matter what the context, there’s a strong possibility that blockchain will affect your business. The very big question is when.

A version of this article appeared in the January–February issue (pp&#;) of Harvard Business Review.

CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. eToro is a multi-asset platform which offers both investing in stocks and cryptoassets, as well as trading CFD assets. Please note that CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 68% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. This content is intended for information and educational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice or investment recommendation.

eToro is a winner for its easy-to-use copy-trading platform, where traders can copy the trades of experienced investors – or receive exclusive perks for sharing their own trading strategies.

With over 3, tradeable symbols, including CFDs, forex, and exchange-traded securities, eToro offers a comprehensive – albeit slightly pricey – trading experience.

• Minimum Deposit: $$
• Trust Score: 91
• Tradeable Symbols (Total) :

eToro pros & cons

Overall Summary

Is eToro safe?

eToro is considered low-risk, with an overall Trust Score of 91 out of eToro is not publicly traded, does not operate a bank, and is authorised by two tier-1 regulators (high trust), one tier-2 regulator (average trust), and zero tier-3 regulators (low trust). eToro is authorised by the following tier-1 regulators: Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Learn more about Trust Score.

Regulations Comparison

Offering of investments

eToro offers a total of 3, tradeable symbols. The following table summarizes the different investment products available to eToro clients.

Usability: As a multi-asset broker, eToro goes above and beyond to make the experience smooth for traders. For example, eToro provides the ability to select between trading CFDs and the underlying assets directly from the trade-ticket window. A subtle feature, but very useful.

Cryptocurrency: Cryptocurrency trading is available at eToro through CFDs and through trading the underlying asset (e.g. buying Bitcoin). Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to residents of the U.K. or the Netherlands. In addition, cryptocurrency trading at eToro is not available in Russia, the Netherlands or France (including French Territories).

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eToro offering of investments:

Commissions and fees

eToro is a market-maker broker and lists a typical variable spread of 1 pip on the EUR/USD, which is slightly higher than the industry average. Considering its trading fees, retail traders don't choose eToro for its spreads, but rather for its social copy trading platform capabilities.

VIP accounts: eToro offers a VIP club (called eToro Club) with five tiers of membership that range from Silver to Diamond. These tiers are for traders who maintain balances between $5,$, and feature varying benefits depending on the level of membership. VIP perks range from access to Trading Central, to discounted withdrawal and deposit fees, to a dedicated account manager – among other VIP-style benefits.

Popular Investor program: eToro's Popular Investor program (for traders who allow other investors to copy their strategy) has four levels – ranging from Cadet to Elite – where traders can become eligible for various perks. To qualify for the Cadet tier you must have more than $1, in account equity, attract $ in customer assets that copy your strategy, and maintain a risk score below 7 for at least two months. Benefits available to Popular Investors include spread rebates, monthly payments, and even a management fee for those who reach elite status.

Cryptocurrency trading: Overall, eToro’s pricing is close to the industry average for trading physical cryptocurrency – such as % for buying or selling bitcoin – while its fiat-to-crypto conversion fee is high at 5% (1% eToro fee and 4% Simplex fee). Meanwhile, converting from crypto to crypto at eToro only costs % (in addition to prevailing spreads). With a large number of crypto assets – both CFDs and the underlying assets – eToro is our No. 1 broker for Crypto Trading for

Exchange-Traded Securities: In addition to trading CFD shares, eToro also offers zero-dollar commission for U.S. stock trading (not available to U.S. investors) and supports fractional shares. To learn more, see our www.oldyorkcellars.com review of eToro.

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eToro pricing summary:

Mobile trading apps

Overall, eToro offers an excellent mobile experience. The ease-of-use factor is high, and eToro delivers nearly all the same features across both its web platform and its mobile app, which multi-device clients will appreciate.

Apps overview: eToro provides two mobile apps: the eToro app and eToro Money for crypto and money transfers. Both apps are available on Google Play for Android, and Apple App Store for iOS devices.

Ease of use: Testing on Android, I found that the eToro mobile app maintains the look and feel of the web version, including useful functions such as dark and light mode themes, and synced watchlists that help to unify the platform experience across devices.

Charting: Like the rest of the mobile app, the charts are responsive and closely match the web platform experience, though just five indicators are present compared to 67 on the web. Drawing tools are missing from the app entirely and would be a welcome enhancement to an otherwise cleanly-designed and well-integrated mobile app.

Cryptocurrency wallet: The eToro wallet, known as eToro Money, is a separate mobile app where users can deposit and withdraw money and actual cryptocurrencies. Crypto assets are held by eToroX, which acts as the custodian of your cryptocurrency private keys. The eToro Money Wallet closely resembles the look and feel of the eToro mobile app, and includes support for social trading.

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eToro mobile trading:

Other trading platforms

eToro's main innovation is merging self-directed trading and copy trading under a unified trading experience. It is a winning combination. See our Best FX Brokers for Copy Trading.

Platforms overview: Ease of use and simplicity of design are at the heart of the eToro web platform experience, and carrying out basic operations is straightforward and painless. Traders gain access to functions such as the ability to create watchlists, as well as the option to add instruments simply by searching available markets. These design qualities helped eToro rank Best in Class in the Ease of Use and Beginners categories in

Charting: The full functionality of eToro’s charting truly comes alive when you launch its ProCharts setting. ProCharts comes with 66 indicators, 13 drawing tools and the ability to save and choose from predefined layouts.

Trading tools: Another innovative tool from eToro is its CopyPortfolios feature, which groups traders into single funds for copy trading. CopyPortfolios help to bridge the gap for investors who want to use eToro on a passive basis, as they can create a portfolio based entirely on one or more CopyPortfolios. On the other hand, self-directed traders can also use CopyPortfolios to diversify their trading, making it a potentially useful tool for all eToro clients.

Cryptocurrency tools: eToro users can find crypto-trading ideas and copy other individuals or groups of traders across supported cryptocurrency pairs. For investors looking to withdraw underlying crypto assets from their eToro account, eToroX offers the eToro Mobile wallet app. This app acts as a custodian with a multi-signature scheme and closely mirrors the brand's forex mobile app.

Copy trading structure: Fully automated trading systems (i.e. algorithmic trading) such as those supported on MetaTrader are not permitted at eToro. Therefore, when you copy another trader on eToro, you can be sure they are placing each trade manually. This is quite useful to know, as many other social trading platforms that aggregate the performance of traders usually permit discretionary (manual) trading as well as automated strategies.

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eToro trading platform:

Market research

Overall, eToro's research is competitive and continues to improve year-over-year – but is still not award-winning. For example, there are no daily video updates with market analysis, and certain features are locked until specific account tiers are reached.

Research overview: eToro offers a standard economic calendar, an earnings reports calendar, news headlines, daily market analysis series, and podcasts. That said, several of these features are not directly integrated into the eToro platform. Trading Central is also available, but is not offered to all clients – it’s reserved for eToro club members that have reached a specific tier status. There are also research reports for stocks available to funded account holders.

Market news and analysis: eToro does an excellent job incorporating fundamental analysis into its platform for shares trading, and in the daily articles posted to eToro’s blog. However, the lack of technical analysis leaves eToro falling behind category leaders such as IG and Saxo Bank, and is a feature that would improve eToro’s Analyst Weekly series of articles.

Sentiment data: Only the trades of top traders at eToro are used to calculate sentiment data, rather than showing sentiment based on data from all users. This takes it a step above the usual sentiment tools brokers provide, and is similar to how CMC Markets displays this data.

Wall newsfeed: eToro uses a Twitter-style wall feed of collective commentary for each given instrument. This public feed appears as a stream of updates from other eToro users, designed to give you an idea of what other traders are posting about in the eToro network. As the content is sourced by eToro users, it can vary in quality. It is certainly unique; that said, I find content that is generated by in-house staff or from third-party professionals to generally be of higher quality.

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eToro research:

Education

While the eToro Learning Academy and blog offer a good number of videos, articles, and weekly webinars, the quality and volume trail educational leaders like AvaTrade, Saxo Bank or IG.

Learning center: eToro offers an online trading academy containing dozens of videos and articles that are organized by category and experience level.

Integrated educational tidbits: eToro provides extra details for beginners next to each symbol available within its platform, such as information about trading instruments (like the EUR/USD currency pair), and general facts to consider before investing.

Room for improvement: eToro has a decent number of videos on its YouTube channel, including archived webinars and market analysis, but I found it hard to distinguish between research, promotional, and educational videos. Organizing educational content by playlist and separating platform tutorials from financial market education would help to balance eToro’s video content in this category.

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eToro education:

Final thoughts

eToro is great for retail traders who want to crowdsource investment ideas using the power of copy trading, or for highly-experienced active traders who want to be rewarded for sharing their ideas with other traders.

Less experienced traders that require some degree of handholding may find the user-friendly platform an added benefit. That said, I do not recommend eToro for active or high-volume traders, as higher spreads and small maximum trade sizes will be a limiting factor. Likewise, algorithmic trading is not supported.

When it comes to social copy trading and crypto trading, eToro remains our number one choice in , and won our award for #1 Trader Community.

Is eToro trustworthy?

eToro is trusted by over 13 million traders globally and is licensed to hold client funds and provide brokerage services in numerous countries. Following a $ billion merger, eToro was listed on the NASDAQ in Q3 Founded in , eToro is regulated in two tier-1 jurisdictions and one tier-2 jurisdiction, making it a safe broker (low-risk) for trading forex and CFDs.

Factors that determine trust in financial services include proper regulatory licensing, operational history, adequate financial capital to ensure solvency, and a track record of excellent customer service. In all of these areas, eToro has proven itself more than capable of earning clients’ trust.

Is eToro really free?

The cost of eToro’s copy-trading service is incorporated into its spreads. So while it may be “free” to use eToro in terms of commissions, you will still incur trading costs – such as the bid/ask spreads.

All online brokers make money by charging commissions, spreads, or a combination of both (and may receive rebates and the like). You don’t pay anything extra beyond spreads, and carry costs if you choose to hold positions overnight.

Can you make money with eToro?

Yes, you can make money with eToro, though doing so — as with any broker — is never guaranteed. eToro’s value proposition lies in its social copy trading capabilities, which allow you to select from its vast database of traders and copy trades in real time. But bear in mind you can also lose money when dealing with investments such as forex, stocks, and CFDs, including with eToro.

The key to making money at eToro as a trader is making the right trading choices and risk-management decisions, so as to keep your average losses low relative to your average profits over time (whether you are trading manually or copy trading).

When copy trading at eToro, you still must do enough analysis to sort through the database of investors and decide which, if any, to copy. You also have to determine how much to allocate to each strategy provider, whether to set any maximum draw-down limits (that is, a value where you automatically stop copying if a certain loss threshold is breached), and if you’ll copy traders that are already open or only new trades.

Is eToro good for beginners?

Yes, eToro is a great choice for beginners. Its trading platform is easy to learn and not overly complex. eToro does an excellent job of balancing useful tools and features in a web platform and mobile trading app that is user-friendly. While being good for beginners doesn’t mean it is easy to make money, it’s easier to use eToro than some of the more sophisticated trading platforms out there.

One challenge beginners may face with eToro is conducting sufficient analysis when deciding which investors to copy, and learning to look at more than just the absolute returns that a given trader has achieved.

For example, you might consider the risk score, the average number of trades placed per week, and the average profit, loss, and holding time for a given investor that you are considering copying.

What type of broker is eToro?

eToro can act as a market-maker or agency broker, depending on factors such as which eToro entity holds your account. Market-maker brokers act as the counterparty to your trade, while agency brokers send your order to other market-makers in return for rebates, profit-sharing, widened spreads and commissions.

For example, eToro U.K. and eToro Europe both act as market-makers but can also hedge their client’s trades and act as a matched-principal (agency broker) if needed as part of the firm’s internal risk management process. What matters is that brokers adhere to best execution regulations, and eToro is obligated to do so where it is mandated by law.

About eToro

An early pioneer in social copy trading, eToro was founded in Israel in as a financial trading technology developer. After launching its first product, it has since grown to service over 13 million registered users with an innovative platform that continually evolves to be one of the largest social networks globally, with clients in over countries.

In , eToro went public via a $ billion reverse merger with FinTech Acquisition Corp V (NASDAQ: FTCV), a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC). The brand's crypto exchange, eToroX, is regulated by the Gibraltar FSC and registered in the US with FinCEN as a Money Service Business (MSB). Read more on Wikipedia about eToro.

Disclosures

eToro is a multi-asset platform that offers both investing in stocks and CFDs. eToro also offers crypto assets via eToro Crypto, a separately regulated entity.

Please note that CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 67% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Past performance is not an indication of future results.

Cryptoassets are volatile instruments which can fluctuate widely in a very short timeframe and therefore are not appropriate for all investors. Other than via CFDs, trading cryptoassets is unregulated and therefore is not supervised by any EU regulatory framework.

eToro USA LLC does not offer CFDs and makes no representation and assumes no liability as to the accuracy or completeness of the content of this publication, which has been prepared by our partner utilizing publicly available non-entity specific information about eToro.

Review Methodology

For our Forex Broker Review we assessed, rated, and ranked 39 international forex brokers over a three-month time period resulting in over 50, words of published research.

Each broker was graded on different variables, including our proprietary Trust Score algorithm. This innovative scoring system ranks the level of trustworthiness for each broker based on factors such as licenses, regulation and corporate structure. Read about Trust Score here.

As part of our annual review process, all brokers had the opportunity to provide updates and key milestones and complete an in-depth data profile, which we hand-checked for accuracy.

Ultimately, our rigorous data validation process yields an error rate of less than .1% each year, providing site visitors with quality data they can trust. Learn more about how we test.

Forex Risk Disclaimer

There is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities. With respect to margin-based foreign exchange trading, off-exchange derivatives, and cryptocurrencies, there is considerable exposure to risk, including but not limited to, leverage, creditworthiness, limited regulatory protection and market volatility that may substantially affect the price, or liquidity of a currency or related instrument. It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable, or that they will not result in www.oldyorkcellars.com more.

About the Author

Steven Hatzakis Steven Hatzakis is the Global Director of Research for www.oldyorkcellars.com Steven previously served as an Editor for Finance Magnates, where he authored over 1, published articles about the online finance industry. Steven is an active fintech and crypto industry researcher and advises blockchain companies at the board level. Over the past 20 years, Steven has held numerous positions within the international forex markets, from writing to consulting to serving as a registered commodity futures representative.

An overview of Bitcoin Investor

Do you work like crazy at a tedious job only to earn a meagre salary at the end of the month? Do you feel like your dream of going on a luxurious foreign vacation may never come true? If so, then bid farewell to your dreary job and step into the fabulous platform Bitcoin Investor. Bitcoin Investor is an automated cryptocurrency trading platform that is equipped with crypto trading robots and regulated brokers. One can earn a generous income and rake in rich profits through trading and investment in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies through the platform of Bitcoin Investor. Read the thorough Bitcoin Investor review to acquire more information about the platform. The Bitcoin Investor review critically assesses its features and provides a tour of the platform. Go through the Bitcoin Investor review and sign up with the platform today to start making money with the best auto trading system in the industry.  

What is Bitcoin Investor?

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Bitcoin Investor is an award-winning trading system for automated cryptocurrency trading at the cryptocurrency market exchange. The AI-driven bots and regulated brokers facilitate the execution of the most successful cryptocurrency trading and crypto asset investment. The best Bitcoin bots are programmed with artificial intelligence and machine learning. These bots stay ahead of the cryptocurrency market competitors by seconds to predict the crypto market conditions with almost % accuracy and then extract booming profits for the registered traders. Read the Bitcoin Investor review to know more about the platform.

What are the features of Bitcoin Investor?

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If your mind is teeming with a million questions about the platform then the elucidation of the special features of Bitcoin Investor below shall set you straight. Check out the review of the features below and start auto trading and investment right away:

1. The registration process is easy and hassle-free

At Bitcoin Investor, it takes only a few minutes to sign up with the platform and start making money through the crypto bots and brokers. Simply enter your name, email address, and phone number to open an account with the trading bots and brokers. Registration is not only smooth but free of cost as well. Most scam versions of Bitcoin Investor ask for payment during registration. Watch out for such red flags and avoid falling prey to crypto market scam. Verify your email ID and contact number for successful registration. At Bitcoin Investor one can start trading within ten minutes of registering with the trading system.

2. The trading robots are highly accurate

Making money through crypto trading is as easy as ABC for many people, all you need to do first is make the minimum deposit of $ to activate the trading robots. The trading bots are programmed with artificial intelligence to conduct trading on behalf of the registered traders by staying ahead of the crypto market competitors by s. The trading bots conduct fundamental and technical analysis of the market and then transmit trading signals to the registered traders. The traders instruct the trading bots to execute the trading decision on the basis of the signal. The bots open and close the trading positions at top speed and rake in rich profits for the traders.

One of the specialties of the trading bots is that they maintain a high consistency in profitability. The win rate of the bots is more than 90% which means that almost nine out of the ten trades placed are successful and profitable for the traders. Monitor the performance of the robots for only minutes every day to ensure quick profits daily.

3. The brokers of the platform are regulated, reputed, and efficient

The online brokers are regulated by international financial authorities like the FCA and the ASIC. The brokers take care of the money deposited by the registered investors and then invest the money in different lucrative schemes. The investors receive the returns and thereby earn a generous income from the platform.

What are the steps to start trading at Bitcoin Investor?

Follow the steps below to start making money:

Step 1: Register with Bitcoin Investor

Sign up with your name, phone number, and email address to start automated trading at the Bitcoin Investor. Get your identifiable details verified and then login with your credentials to start trading and investment at Bitcoin Investor.

Step 2: Make the minimum deposit of only $

With the Bitcoin Investor, you can start small, and then make financial progress slowly to accumulate a substantial amount of money. Begin your trading and investment with only $ Re-invest a portion of your profits and conduct the live trading sessions every day to extract profits from the market.

Step 3: Conduct demo trading for free

Develop your trading skills and learn to analyse the cryptocurrency market trends by opening a demo account with the trading platform. The registered people learn to assess the pattern of cryptocurrency price fluctuations, and take an attempt at studying the trading graphs and charts as well. Conduct demo trading for free before venturing into the live market.

Step 4: Execute live trading in the cryptocurrency markets and exchanges

The people can enter the live market through the bots of Bitcoin Investor. Let the trading robots conduct live trading on your behalf. Wield your strategies through the bots by setting the trading platform according to your preferences. Configure the parameters like take profits, stop loss, daily trade limits, and more to conduct live trading according to your preferences. 

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Pros and Cons

As understood from the review, the pros and cons are tabulated below:

A few important FAQs about Bitcoin Investor

1. Is Bitcoin Investor legit?

Ans. Bitcoin Investor is not only legitimate but also safe for trading and investment. It is not a scam. The trading platform is licensed to different financial authorities like the ASIC and FCA. The platform maintains data privacy as well through SSL encryption technology. Visit the official website to stay away from scams and have the most authentic and profitable experience.

2. How to earn a decent income from Bitcoin Investor?

Ans. Bitcoin Investor allows every registered user to become a part of the Bitcoin Trading or Mining Pool to earn a residual income from the platform. Many people enjoy a recurring income within $$ from the platform. Avoid the market scam and earn a good amount of money from the platform.

3. How does the payout system of Bitcoin Investor work?

Ans. The payout processing system of Bitcoin Investor is automated. Place a request for withdrawing money right after the live trading session. The payout gets processed and the money gets credited to the bank account of the users within 24 hours.

Conclusion

 As evident from the Bitcoin Investor review, the platform is one of the best auto trading systems in the industry. It eases the whole process of trading cryptocurrencies and makes sure that people can earn money to their heart’s content through consistent trade and investment. New investors find wonderful opportunities of investment through the brokers of the platform. They make money without moving a finger and the brokers offer the most dedicated services without charging commission. Bitcoin Investor is new to the industry but it has already become popular among millions of people across the globe for its transparency of services. Register with the platform with your name and email and start trading right from today.