Should you invest in cryptocurrency? My answer is that it depends—but I don’t believe it’s necessary for most investors to achieve their long-term financial goals.

Crypto has produced tremendous returns over the years, and if you’ve made money investing in it, that’s great. My concern has never been whether it can go up. My concern is that the reason many people own it seems to change over time.

I’ve heard crypto described as a store of value, an inflation hedge, digital gold, a replacement for traditional currencies, and a high-growth investment. To me, those are very different reasons for owning an investment. When the investment thesis keeps changing, it becomes harder to understand exactly what you own.

I believe good investing starts with a simple question: Why do I own this? You should understand how an investment is expected to create value, what role it plays in your portfolio, and how it helps you reach your financial goals. Too often, it feels like people buy crypto first and then search for a reason to justify owning it.

That doesn’t mean crypto can’t continue to appreciate. I actually think it may continue to do well over time. But I view it as a speculative risk asset, not as a requirement for building long-term wealth.

For me, it comes back to process. Know what you own, why you own it, and how it fits into your financial plan before you invest.