As I write, it’s a red day. The second one in a row, actually.

Most cryptos are down… just like yesterday.

Obviously, the crypto world has been taking some hits recently.

Late last week, a Japanese cryptocurrency exchange reported more than $500 million worth of NEM (New Economy Movement) was stolen. And there’s more…

Earlier this month, French Minister for the Economy Bruno Le Maire restated his intention to include bitcoin as a major topic of debate at the upcoming G20 Summit in March.

Theresa May, England’s ineffectual leader, says her government is considering imposing regulations on crypto, preferably in coordination with the U.S.

And to top things off, China and Korea also made noises about more restrictions.

It sure seems like the noose is tightening around crypto…

On the other hand, any serious investor who has thought about the risks that crypto brings to the table probably had the same reaction I had…

Nothing really surprising or new here.

If any of these developments shocked or scared you, you clearly haven’t focused on the risk of owning crypto.

That’s okay… because we have.

And we’re willing to share with you some of our thinking on this important topic.

Our first piece of advice?

Don’t listen to the financial press.

The Mainstream Press Gets Crypto Risk Wrong

The mainstream press spends an inordinate amount of time reporting on government action (or inaction), hacks like the one that just happened with Japan’s Coincheck and price drops like the roughly 3% to 10% drops across the board we’ve seen yesterday and today.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s news. It should be covered. But the press offers little meaningful context or perspective.

Its reporting is shallow, misleading and often just plain wrong.

Let’s address the recent headlines one at a time…

Hacks. Yes, it’s lousy that it’s happening. And the pain is very real to those whose wallets were emptied. (By the way, Coincheck has pledged to pay back the losses to those affected.)

But it’s not a threat to the overall viability of the crypto space.

For one, unlike in the days of the Mt. Gox hack, there are a dozen major exchanges now. Though the amount stolen was more than what was purloined from Mt. Gox ($530 million versus $460 million), it was a much smaller amount when compared to the total value of crypto coins today.