Australian Crypto Convention 2025

I was at the Australian Crypto Convention 2025. The event was vibrant and exciting. However, I do question who was actually there to learn and who was just there for fun or free merch. Why pay for a ticket and spend your weekend collecting free stuff? This, I don’t understand. The event was much busier than last year, from what I was told. I assume this is due to the hype and the all-time high of Bitcoin. As Michael Saylor said, demand for Bitcoin increases as new investors enter the market. This can also be a factor in driving up prices.

What types of companies were there and what are their incentives?

There were sessions from speakers in different areas. I have categorised the companies as follows:

• Companies offering platforms to store and trade cryptocurrency.

• Companies offering information and education on cryptocurrency.

• Companies offering reports such as tax summaries and performance tracking of your cryptocurrency.

• Companies offering lending against your cryptocurrency. From my understanding, it’s primarily Bitcoin and may include Ethereum.

Yes, it’s quite fun to have different companies at the event. However, it’s important to look at their incentives and what they are selling.

Day Trading vs Long-Term Investment

There are also people who encourage day trading in crypto by offering expensive courses. In my view, if you are working full-time and have other commitments, I would not recommend day trading as it can ruin your physical and mental health. Think about it — your job becomes staring at computer screens all day. Plus, you are always “on” and never switching off. At least with a 9–5 job, you can switch off and focus on other parts of your life.

Crypto is even more demanding than day trading shares because the market never closes. It is always open. I would be cautious about people selling these courses and encouraging you to trade.

I am coming from the perspective of a long-term investor. The only cryptocurrency I understand is Bitcoin, and I am currently invested in it. As for the rest of the cryptocurrencies, I don’t have the time to do a deep dive. I don’t have the bandwidth to understand them because I also have other aspects of life to focus on. It’s about asset allocation.

Asset Allocation

I heard many investors and advisors say we should put 2–5% of our assets into Bitcoin. It is not uncommon that if they invested a few years ago at 5%, it may now have grown to 20% of their assets. If your allocation grows to 20%, then it’s up to you whether to hold it , sell it or sell part of it.

I would apply the “sleep test.” If I put X amount into Bitcoin, can I genuinely sleep at night? What are my future expenses? Will I want to have a family in the next 5 to 10 years? If I lose all of my Bitcoin investment, can I recover from it? Therefore, being conservative in your allocation to Bitcoin is not a bad decision due to the fluctuations of Bitcoin.

Psychology of Investing

A really good session I listened to was about behaviour and managing your wealth, including buying and selling Bitcoin. He brought it back to having clarity over your goals — why you are trying to build your wealth. This helps clarify how much you can invest and when you should sell. It’s a craft. Just as an athlete needs a coach, we also need guidance on how we approach life. I don’t have a coach at the moment, but I am trying to build rules and guidelines for how I approach investing and life.

If you don’t manage your investments well and end up losing most of it, you will be stressed and may have to start again. This can be difficult depending on your circumstances. Instead of focusing on the present, you will dwell on your mistakes. If what you are investing in gives you anxiety or stress, you won’t enjoy the present moment. You won’t live your life — you’ll constantly be in a state of stress and worry. You won’t find time to rest and relax. It comes down to discipline and not over-investing into one asset class.

Cryptocurrency Regulations

Crypto is becoming more regulated in Australia, which provides more comfort for retail investors. This was discussed in one of the sessions. However, there is still a long way to go in terms of developing and implementing proper regulations. Why is this an issue? We need to go back to the principles of government and parliament: parliament writes the law, and the government implements it. If you do not comply with regulations, the government will come after you. If you want to dispute it, you would have to go to court, which is a long and expensive process.

The good thing is that crypto companies are in Canberra lobbying politicians to regulate the space. The downside is that change will take time.

Another innovation that interests me is allowing people to borrow money against their crypto. This helps people build sufficient deposits to enter the property market. Banks normally require a 20% deposit; otherwise, you are required to pay LMI.