I believe Fantom is the best buy in cryptocurrency right now. It is kind of like Solana, in that it has a really fast blockchain technology, and it could scale in a way that Ethereum cannot right now. But there are also some more specific reasons that help make Fantom one of the strongest buys in the cryptocurrency space today. So here are 2 reasons I am buying the coin this year, and why I believe you should consider the coin as well.

1. You want to own a piece of the platform that the cryptocurrency universe will sit on

ETH is the big whale of DeFi. If you want to stake your cryptocurrency and earn high yields, historically ETH is a level 1 blockchain that has provided the best platform for all this to occur. The total value locked on the ETH blockchain is about $116 billion.

Over the years, some people have created dApps on the ETH platform, and so the network’s value has only gotten larger and larger. That is why ETH’s coin has a market capitalization of $295 billion: The network validates the importance of the blockchain.

Bitcoin has never served that function; it is too slow. Now, as interest in cryptocurrency has exploded, we are discovering that ETH is too slow, as well. It doesn’t have the capacity for big numbers of transactions — it does not scale. Its blockchain can manage about 15 transactions each second. While that seems like a lot, it isn’t. As you have an increasing amount of people trying to get their transactions on the ETH blockchain, it creates a traffic jam in the process. And so the fees to execute the transactions on the ETH network have increased and keep increasing.

At one point this past year, ETH fees spiked above $300 each transaction. Compare that ridiculous price with the Solana and Fantom networks, where a transaction can cost much less than a penny. That is because those chains have a large capacity for speed. Fantom’s network is able to handle about 25,000 transactions each second, and Solana is double that speed. And Fantom is also able to validate a transaction in just a second (about 12 times quicker than Solana, and 60 times quicker than Ethereum).

Last year, the cryptocurrency value of Solana and Fantom increased 11,000% and 14,000%, respectively. In my opinion, the cryptocurrency market is buying up these coins due to a belief that one of these networks will one day replace Ethereum as the key level 0 blockchain in the cryptocurrency universe. We do not know (yet) which coin that will be, and ETH is addressing its slow speeds in a long-awaited upgrade of its network, but there are several reasons to believe Fantom has an advantage.

2. Fantom is compatible with Solana and Ethereum

My main reason for remaining bullish on Fantom is that it is a superfast network. I believe one of these two networks will one day replace Ethereum as the main platform for the cryptocurrency universe. What gives Fantom the edge over Solana is that it is compatible with the old-guard network, ETH. (Solana isn’t). So, it is quite simple for ETH dApps to shift to this quicker (and cheaper) ecosystem.

It might be a great idea to purchase a mix of all three of these cryptocurrencies: Solana, Ethereum, and Fantom. Or you can just buy the fastest coin where transactions cost a lot less than a penny (Fantom and Solana). But if you are going to purchase one crypto this year, I would recommend buying the fastest coin that helps make it easy for the ETH network to migrate which is Fantom.

The merger between the two Canadian pot players Tilray and Aphria was the highlight of the industry during the pandemic. Aphria was already positioned as a strong cannabis company, and traders expected that the merger with Tilray would help create a cannabis powerhouse. As a merger this large normally takes time to be fully integrated, but Tilray has already been on the right track. Since the finalization of the merger in May of 2021, the combined quarterly results of the two companies have been impressive.

While many Canadian companies are having a hard time, Tilray may be the only Canadian cannabis stock to own this year. Let’s take a look at why.

The merger with Aphria has proved beneficial

Prior to the merger, Aphria was already a strong profitable business. Tilray gave it access to more markets. Though it might take a while for Tilray to reap the full benefits of the merger, the business had already realized around $70 million in cost synergies by January 10. Cost synergies are the reductions in cost that a business achieves from a merger by capitalizing on each other’s efficiencies. Those efficiencies include higher-class production facilities, growth strategies, competitive innovative products, the scale of operations, and much more to produce higher sales.

Management thinks Tilray will easily cross its starting target of $80 million faster than scheduled and could also produce an extra $20 million in fiscal 2023.

The merger with Tilray has extended the Aphria’s horizons around the globe. Its cultivation facilities in Germany and Portugal will help it to dig deeper within the European markets.

Note that some of these cost synergies targets don’t include revenue synergies. With better access to the global markets, the business might be able to continue producing higher revenues.

The only Canadian cannabis stock worth considering now

It would be a while before Canadian pot stocks rebound. Unless they have growth revenue at a drastic rate, it would be difficult to achieve profitability any time in 2022. Moreover, most of them are mainly focusing on expansion within the U.S. market, which might burden their balance sheets. On the other hand, Tilray has been playing it smart. It has become profitable and strengthened its main operations before entering into the United States markets.

The business is financially well-positioned to take every advantage of the opportunities in the quickly evolving cannabis markets in the U.S. In Dec., it made another smart acquisition of a Colorado-based alcohol company called Breckenridge Distillery. Speaking about acquisitions within the United States market, the CEO Irwin Simon says, “These important, diversified revenue streams can be the key to delivering on our main goal of leadership within the industry with $4 billion in revenue stream by the end of 2024.”

Marijuana is still a very risky sector, so my advice to those wanting to invest would be to begin with a smaller investment in Tilray with a mixture of other growth stocks and hold onto them for the long haul for a better chance of earning fruitful returns.

Two tech companies I would buy while in a recession are CrowdStrike Holdings and Autodesk. Both provide crucial software, something that can’t be cut regardless of how slow business gets. During the last recession, which was caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, each of these companies shrugged off the challenge and kept growing.

1. CrowdStrike

An area no business can cut back on is its cybersecurity. An attack that compromises the security when a company is already having a hard time during a recession might be the end of the company. The company’s endpoint security software helps protect network access points, like a phone or computer. Its zero-trust approach will help identify when its users aren’t doing what they normally do. The response to prevent any stolen information or damage is instant.

Unlike Autodesk, CrowdStrike is new enough to have never gone through a prolonged recession. Founded in 2011, the business has only known good times.

Although the business is not yet profitable, with the rising revenues coupled with how crucial the software is to its customers, the company might reach profitability sooner than later. Though profitability is great, having great leadership is the key for any team during a challenging period, and Kurtz provides CrowdStrike with an edge.

The stock is also an excellent investment right now; during its Q3 2022, yearly recurring revenue (ARR) increased 67% to $1.5 billion and customer count also increased 75% when compared to the year-ago quarter. Quick adoption showcases how important CrowdStrike’s products have become, making it unlikely they will be cut when a recession hits.

2. Autodesk

Manufacturing and construction slow down when recessions hit. With Autodesk’s old business model, engineering and architecture companies could choose to not upgrade to the newest software model and wait until its business picks up.

Now, the subscription model produces revenue every year, unless a customer were to drop the software completely. Autodesk’s software lineup includes AutoCAD, Revit, and Inventor — all must-haves for their users. These programs modify, create, and maintain products and designs and could never be dropped; they have to be replaced instead — an expensive alternative unlikely to happen during a recession.

With how crucial the United States is to the global economy when a recession hits the nation, it will likely have an affect around the globe. However, every region will experience a recession differently. The revenue stream of Autodesk is diversified across all corners of the globe and is growing.

By being diversified, Autodesk is able to maintain growth through a domestic recession by relying on other regions.

It likely will never enjoy growth that is as fast as CrowdStrike but it is still solidly profitable. It converted 23% of its revenue into free cash flow during Q3 and had a 13% profit. Recurring revenue has made up 97% of the total. Autodesk will not light the world on fire, but it could provide it with solid results.