Weiss Ratings, an independent ratings agency, started publishing ratings on cryptocurrencies earlier this year. The first grade the agency gave to bitcoin was C+, but Weiss recently upgraded the largest digital currency to B-.
Of the 93 cryptocurrencies rated by Weiss, just 14 have grades of B while 54 carry C ratings. Ninety-three represents a scant a percentage of the overall crypto universe, which is currently populated by more than 1,500 alt-coins.
“The new world of cryptocurrencies has delivered astonishing profits to investors and holds great promise for the future,” according to Weiss. “Millions of new investors have rushed in. Hundreds of self-declared experts have appeared to advise them. But the market suffers from lax standards, murky operators, marketing hype, and periodic market crashes. It desperately needs the clarity that only robust, impartial ratings can provide.”
Weiss said the following of bitcoin in its initial rating: “ Bitcoin gets excellent scores for security and widespread adoption. But it is encountering major network bottlenecks, causing delays and high transactions costs. Despite intense ongoing efforts that are achieving some initial success, Bitcoin has no immediate mechanism for promptly upgrading its software code.”
Report Cards
None of the alt-coins rated by Weiss have A grades. Bitcoin does not lack for supporters as there have been plenty of bullish calls on the cryptocurrency in recent weeks. Some crypto market observers have opined bitcoin could reach new highs this year, but those are just projections. In financial markets, price matters and bitcoin’s price has rapidly eroded since the start of May.
On Thursday, nine of the 10 largest digital currencies by market capitalization posted gains. Bitcoin’s market value was $129.38 billion as of midday Thursday.
“Cryptocurrencies do not have to achieve an A grade to merit interest by investors. A ‘B’ or even ‘B-‘ also qualify as the investment rating equivalent to ‘buy.’ At the same time, investors should not be overly alarmed by a ‘C’ rating. It is a passing grade; and for investors, implies the equivalent of ‘hold,’” according to Weiss.
For more information on the cryptocurrency market, visit our Bitcoin category.