Is PIVX the Breakout Cryptoasset of 2017?

PIVX, Ubiq, and Zclassic have all forked away from projects that have a strong following to add their own flavor to popular cryptocurrencies. While their counterparts, DASH, Ethereum, and Zcash respectively, have interesting and attractive properties, entirely new communities are being built on modified versions of these cryptoassets. They are all hoping to pursue a path of learning-by-doing, introducing different innovations and more inclusive governance. For coins such as PIVX, Ubiq and Zclassic, 2017 looks to be a formative and interesting year.

PIVX is one of these assets leading the charge in 2017. After forking from DASH, there have been over 300 commits, representing a significant amount of code put into the project. It moves away from proof of work to proof of stake, best exemplified by the Nxt blockchain, allowing anyone to stake their balance to secure the network and earn rewards. A standout feature of PIVX is the ease of use and simplicity for people who may not be familiar with cryptocurrency. Just by holding and staking their balance, they are contributing as a miner would with DASH, with the benefit being there is no sunk cost in the form of a machine for mining.

More developments are due for the altcoin which will cement its position as a cryptoasset to watch in 2017. For example, PIVX will benefit from upgrading to Bitcoin Core 0.12.1, allowing new features to be merged into PIVX. Furthermore, to secure users’ coins, U2F integration is also planned, which will make wallets relatively safe from hackers.

Another interesting aspect of PIVX concerns masternodes, which is drawing in users and contributing to increased interest in the altcoin, with more than 2,000 active globally. Looking below, we see a list of many of the masternode coins. 10,000 PIVX are required to setup a masternode, which helps to secure and stabilize the network, and is significantly cheaper than running a masternode for more popular coins such as DASH or XEM. Users are incentivized to secure the network with returns of more than five percent per year. Providing inclusive access to passive income is also a main driver of PIVX’s surge in popularity, as even if users just stake their balance, they can earn similar returns.

Data on some Masternode coins (feel free to comment if I missed some). Up avg of 48% past 24 hours and 250% in 7d. pic.twitter.com/TK3a6co5Dg

— Jim (@jimtalksdata) July 14, 2017

Finally, the zerocoin implementation is still in progress, but once completed, will make PIVX transactions private by default; PIVX will be the first proof of stake coin to do so.

The price development on the weekly timeframe is shown below for PIVX-BTC and shows that the second half of 2017 could see the altcoin galvanize its gains against bitcoin. For the first half of 2017, we see that PIVX broke out into the wider consciousness, with a massive price increase during March and April. Markets cooled off and established a new floor around 0.000278 toward the end of May. Since May, PIVX-BTC has started to trend higher again and with the price above the Ichimoku cloud, suggesting we are still in long-term bull market.

Moreover, the Ichimoku cloud looks to be switching color back to green, giving another potential buy signal. Also, the conversion line (blue) is trending higher and looks to cross above the base line (red), which will signal renewed bullish momentum.

We see that the Ichimoku cloud indicates equilibrium around 0.00090 for late 2017. Therefore, we should see a drift toward this region and will provide a good buying opportunity if the market tests this support zone in the future.

For the present, we see that a fractal support level has recently formed around 0.000625 and the successively higher fractal sell and buy levels formed since May 2017 suggests that a recovery in the price will continue. A break above the fractal resistance at 0.00082721 will give further bullish confirmation.

Using Fibonacci analysis, PIVX-BTC lies just below an important resistance at 0.00076368 and a break of this level is required to target 0.00096992. Alternatively, we look to buy PIVX once the 50 percent retracement level is tested again, which lies at 0.00048805.

With the market seemingly bored of PIVX-BTC, this suggests it may be a good time to buy the altcoin.

In summary, PIVX is geared toward users and privacy, experiencing strong growth and may be one of the most important breakout cryptoassets of 2017. Improving on existing platforms and developing a real sense of community will surely serve coins like PIVX, Ubiq, and Zclassic well, and it could be their year for the taking.