why has Monero missed out on these big pumps? I get that the pumps are irrational. I understand that there's a lot to be said for a currency that's stable and so on. I realize that sharp increases in prices are not healthy for the long term ecosystem.
All that said, the majority of traders on Polo et al, wouldn't know fungibility from a hole in the ground, much less care. So, given that they're willing to buy anything with a pulse, why not Monero? Why hasn't this madness pumped our currency? It seems more than odd. It seems...deliberate.
I'm beginning to think that there are entities who, either out of fear, spite, or revenge, are deliberately keeping our price down. And honestly, I'm usually not the sort of person given to conspiracy theories.
I won't name names, but dash it all, isn't this the most likely reason?
First of all, Monero didn't miss out on these big pumps. Monero started the current mega-bull market; it is not lagging in annual performance.
1. There are a few Dash whales who use their Instamine riches to short XMR rallies because they blame us for making the public aware of their scam's history+risks.
2. XMR has the best (ie widest) distribution of any coin thanks to its fair launch, egalitarian PoW, high early emission, and long term of low prices. This means there are more weak hands ready to take profit on every price advance.
3. Untracable XMR is the coin of choice for botnet/malware mining, creating a steady steam of coins sold soon after being mined.