There were times sitting and looking at the chart, I wondered if the saying “Buy & Hold is the path to wealth” still holds true for Crypto enthusiasts in this 2026.
It sounds very familiar, especially every time CZ repeats the phrase like “if you can't hold, don't dream of getting rich”. The theory is correct, but the market last year did not operate according to the book.
The reality is that once you step into Crypto, few come here to get rich slowly. Everyone has dreamed of x10, x20, or even x50. Everyone wants their account to change their life after a few waves, but few people are patient enough to hold coins for 5–10 years like traditional investments. Crypto has always been a place of speed, great expectations, and the greed that everyone has, it's just a matter of how much.
That's why altcoins are always more attractive than BTC or ETH.
Small capital, large amplitude, just need the right narrative for the account to turn green very quickly. I was once like that, and I'm sure those reading this feel the same. Holding BTC, ETH or $BNB looking at the chart going sideways for a month while somewhere out there people are flaunting altcoin bets that have multiplied several times in just a few days.
But then 2025 gave a rather painful lesson. Even BTC, ETH or SOL didn't run much. The market was stagnant, liquidity was low, and narratives changed continuously. Meanwhile, looking at gold, it was steadily rising, strongly increasing, amidst the doubts of the entire Crypto community.
At that time, it seemed funny, holding a “future” asset that underperformed something considered “classic”.
It was from there that I realized, holding is not wrong, but long-term holding is truly suitable only for those with large capital, free from financial pressure, and enough patience to ignore all short-term fluctuations. For most small traders entering the market with a few thousand, tens of thousands of dollars, waiting 5 years to be 'sustainably rich' sounds a bit extravagant.
Perhaps the most practical strategy during this period is not just to hold on, but to wait for the right moment, the right story, to make 1–2 clean moves.
Like the bets $ASTER or $TRUMP , not needing much, just enough for the account to be profitable, enough to have the confidence to continue, and enough so that when going home, saying I invested in Crypto wouldn't get laughed at by the elders.
Writing these lines is not to deny Buy & Hold, but just to remind myself that the market is always changing, and strategies must also change accordingly. Crypto does not have a one-size-fits-all formula. What matters is where you are, how much capital you have, and how much risk you can tolerate. The rest, let the market answer.
