When 600 cryptocurrency enthusiasts set sail from Singapore on Monday night for their second annual Blockchain Cruise, the price of bitcoin was hovering comfortably above $13500 (about R165000). By the time their 300m ship pulled into Thailand on Wednesday, for an afternoon of bottomless drinks and crypto-focused talks on a sun-soaked private beach, bitcoin had cratered to $10000. The group consisted largely of young men, many of whom became wildly rich - at least on paper - as bitcoin and other digital tokens skyrocketed last year. In all likelihood, they had just lost millions. But if anyone was fazed, they didn't show it. The party rolled on as the sangria and Red Bull flowed, bitcoin-themed rap music blared and drones filmed it all from above. "Nothing goes up in a straight line," explained Ronnie Moas, the founder of Miami Beach-based Standpoint Research, who was one of the event's speakers. In a best-case scenario, he said, bitcoin could jump to $300000 in as little as seven y...
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