Often touted as the Chinese Ethereum, NEO is undergoing something of a resurgence lately, as the competition between leading altcoins starts to heat up and smart networks have become the leading lights of the cryptocurrency world.
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NEO has always been an interesting project. One of the first wave of second-generation cryptocurrencies, it utilises smart contracts to allow the execution of transactions, agreements and value exchanges between different participants on the network - much in the same way Ethereum does.
As a Chinese project, NEO also presents an interesting opportunity for investors as it has the potential to be the chosen cryptocurrency for a huge market as well as being well placed to adapt to regulatory changes - which could prove particularly relevant given China’s recent crackdown on crypto.
So is NEO a good investment? And what can we expect from it in the mid to long term? In the following NEO price prediction, we’ll take a look at the altcoin’s history, as well as find out what top industry analysts are saying about its potential price movement over the next five to ten years.
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A Brief History of NEO
As noted, NEO bears certain similarities to Ethereum. Both were launched in 2014 and both heralded as part of the new generation of smart blockchain technology. However, there are several key differences that make NEO a very interesting project in its own right.
Originally called AntShares, NEO was set up by Da Hongfei and Erik Zhang by their development company, Onchain. During the development phase, Onchain worked with Microsoft China and Fadada and in June 2016 the three firms formed Legal China with an intention to solve several deficiencies of legal digital applications.
Naturally, being developed by an existing blockchain company and in partnership with Microsoft meant that NEO hit the market with a certain amount of credibility. One of NEO’s biggest advantages is that its infrastructure supports the most popular programming languages used by developers, including C#, Java, Go, Python, and Kotlin. This means that, from the outset, there was already a large community of developers that could start expanding the platform.
When it comes to tokens, NEO actually has two. NEO token is the native cryptocurrency for the project that can be used for holding, spending and staking on the network. GAS, on the other hand, is the utility token that supports functions on the network.
What’s interesting about NEO is that anyone holding it can also accrue GAS tokens as a form of interest. In this sense, holding NEO has been likened to holding shares in a company, wherein GAS serves as the dividend.
Whilst NEO has never rivalled Ethereum in any real sense, many industry figures believe that it has somewhat underperformed, which means that it could be primed for price runs that many tokens have already experienced this year.
Looking at NEO’s Price History
As with many cryptocurrencies, NEO’s price movement was fairly uninspired for its first few years of existence. It was 2017 when the token price started to gain traction. Prices hit $47.90 in August before the notorious crypto bubble started towards the end of the year. This led to NEO reaching its all-time high of $198.38 by January of 2018.
As we all know, the bubble burst quite spectacularly in 2018 and the price of NEO tumbled along with the rest of the market, bottoming out at around $5.63. It seemed that NEO was going to fade into obscurity as it barely crept above $10 throughout most of 2019.
However, NEO saw a very successful 2020, more than doubling in value despite the downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Having started the year at $8.68, NEO had reached a respectable $21.49 by September - before the market-wide upturn that saw most tokens surge in value.
2021 has also been a very positive year so far for NEO. Having surged to $44.23 in February, the altcoin also rode the successive crypto market bull runs of March and April, reaching $109.07, before rallying again in May to a high of $122.45.
Towards the end of May the news of China’s potential crypto crackdown hit the market hard and NEO dropped to $65.55. NEO ended 2021 at a price of around $26.
Don't Miss: Neo Price Predictions
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Regulatory Rumblings From China
China has recently announced a potential crackdown on cryptocurrency, sending prices tumbling across the market. However, NEO presents a rather interesting conundrum in this respect. On the one hand, some would say the future looks bleak for a Chinese cryptocurrency but on the other, NEO founder Da Hongfei has previously been tapped by the Government over its regulatory stance and so he is a man very much in the know.
This latest news has undoubtedly led to a downturn in prices, but it wouldn’t be the first time that rumblings from China have affected the market - in fact, trading cryptocurrency has been illegal there since 2019. NEO has been operating under these circumstances for years, so the altcoin could be perfectly placed to lead the inevitable market rebound.
One of the distinctions of the NEO project is the emphasis it has placed on being regulatory-compliant. It aims to effectively bridge the gap through its “digital identity” protocol. This means that every network participant has a unique digital ID that can be verified. Operators then have the option to limit interactions to those who have the required identity.
Effectively, NEO offers to bridge the gap between the completely decentralized, unregulated blockchains like bitcoin and the conventional KYC-compliant economy that many e-commerce platforms and banks must use.
Of course, no one knows what rules China may or may not put in place and whether or not NEO will be compatible with the country’s regulatory stance. But given the credentials detailed above, it certainly presents an interesting opportunity for investors.
Read Also: How to Invest in NEO
What’s Next: NEO Price Predictions For 2025
Any NEO price prediction is subject to numerous factors - some of which we have touched upon above. Inevitably, given the volatility of the cryptocurrency market, any forecasting is little more than speculation and can only ever serve to give you an idea of what a NEO asset’s potential for growth might be.
So, as we have seen there has been a fair bit of market upheaval recently. Following a hugely successful first quarter, the crypto market has been thrown into disarray following the news from China. This inevitably means many analysts are having to reconsider their NEO price predictions.
It seems that TradingBeasts believes that recovery could take some time. According to its technical analysis, the price of NEO will start to rise soon. By the end of 2025 NEO will be trading at an average of $65.35.
Elsewhere, WalletInvestor espouses a more optimistic forecast. The platform believes that by the end of the year NEO will start to make more headway, reaching a potential high of $57.66 in December and continuing to grow at an impressive rate over the next couple of years. By 2025, it is suggested that the token could be trading in excess of $175.62.
Finally, Coinliker has put forward an optimistic prediction, believing that NEO could reach $300 for NEO over the next five years. However, it is unclear whether the platform has adjusted its forecast to take recent events into consideration.
Looking Further Ahead: NEO Price Predictions For 2030
If five-year forecasts are to be taken with a pinch of salt, then ten year NEO price predictions should be seen as nothing more than reflections of current market sentiment. However, they are useful precisely for that reason.
DigitalCoinPrice is fairly optimistic about NEO’s future. It has the coin finishing 2022 at a respectable $31.14 and continuing to grow steadily over the coming years. According to its technical analysis, NEO will break $48.2 in 2026 and by 2028 will be trading at an average price of $77.58 - which would mark an increase of 219.26% on today’s prices.
Meanwhile, Coin Price Forecast has NEO at $83.21 per token at the end of 2030.
A cryptocurrency research firm by the name of Crypto Research Report is calling for NEO to reach $300 by 2025, and $650 by 2030.
Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
Could NEO Be an Ethereum Killer?
Having launched the same year and purporting to offer similar functionality, it was perhaps inevitable that NEO would earn the moniker of Ethereum Killer.
This may have been apt in the first few months, but realistically NEO has never come close to taking Ethereum’s spot as the top smart network on the scene. Whilst it has some innovative features, NEO simply doesn’t have the technical credentials to unseat Vitalik Buterin’s project.
If there is hope for NEO as an Ethereum Killer, it lies in the world of regulation. As we have seen, NEO is one of the few networks that could offer some form of KYC/verification inkeeping with regulatory requirements.
The recent developments in China could well end up a testbed for NEO to prove its worth in this department. However, this is very much a case of ‘what if’ and, realistically, there is nothing to suggest that NEO is about to benefit from the latest regulatory crackdown.
Check Out: Could NEO Be A Millionaire-Maker?
Conclusion: Should You Invest In NEO?
So is NEO another failed Ethereum Killer, or does the recent announcement regarding China’s regulatory stance mean that the altcoin could be one of the best crypto investment opportunities right now? Only time will tell. The crypto market moves fast and coins are always vying for an advantage.
NEO has seen some very promising price movement over the last 12 months or so and investors are once again starting to consider it as a top project in the crypto space. There has also been a renewed emphasis on networks that can support DeFi and NEO can do just that - with the added advantage of its user identity protocol, meaning it could offer the perfect balance of decentralisation and compliance.
Ultimately, NEO presents a risky investment compared to the likes of Bitcoin and/or Ethereum. But in risk lies opportunity. If you are looking to expand your existing cryptocurrency portfolio then NEO could well be a worthy addition - albeit as a long shot over the next few years or so.
Most NEO price predictions suggest that the altcoin can expect to see a significant growth over the coming years. If even the most conservative predictions pan out, anyone who chooses to invest in NEO could see decent returns.
Where To Invest In NEO
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Crypto asset investing is highly volatile and unregulated in some EU countries. No consumer protection. Tax on profits may apply.
FAQs
Does NEO have a future?
The cryptocurrency market moves fast and tokens that had seemingly fallen out of favour can suddenly find themselves back among the market leaders. NEO has had some impressive price movement lately, which suggests there could still be plenty of potential in ‘China’s Ethereum’.
How much will NEO be worth in 2025?
NEO has had a successful year so far in 2022 and many analysts are optimistic over its future. Depending on who you ask, NEO could well be trading between $100 and $300 by 2025.
Is NEO regulated?
Currently, there are no hard and fast regulatory systems dealing with cryptocurrency - that’s sort of the point of blockchain. However, NEO has a unique user ID system that means it could feasible slot into a regulatory framework without too much redevelopment.
Is NEO a good investment?
No one can say for sure which cryptocurrencies will prove to be good investments - after all, one of the most attractive aspects of the market is its volatility. However, NEO certainly has room to grow and has undergone a resurgence in popularity lately. As such, it could be seen as a worthy candidate for investors not averse to a little risk.
What are NEO price predictions for 2030?
Cryptocurrency forecasts for 2030 are fairly unfeasible due to the speed at which technology is developed - but they are useful for illustrating current market sentiment. Amongst the more believable is DigitalCoinPrice. It has NEO approaching $77.58 going into 2029.