2017 was a good year for both US and foreign equity markets. But nothing can compare with the rise of bitcoin (see chart), whose skyrocketing valuation has shocked, elated and dismayed people around the world. Stories abound: the guy who used his bitcoin stash — recently worth $1.7 million! — to buy a pizza; the young woman who sold 17 bitcoin to make a down payment on a house. It is the talk at holiday parties, and has brought young and old together to discuss investing. Bitcoin pricing makes it obvious that prices of assets — including stocks, bonds and real estate — have a lot to do with investor expectations and sentiment, which can go to extremes at times. Are we at such an extreme now? In our next Economic Outlook, due out January 18, LNWM’s CIO Gino Perrina will discuss where we are now in terms of valuations across all asset classes, including bitcoin, and the implications for investors.