Loading live prices...

FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

Man holding head in worry watching a rising Bitcoin chart with the text FOMO DEFINITION.
Daniel Mercer
Written by Daniel Mercer
Updated Jul 06, 2026 1 min. read
|

Introduced by Patrick McGinnis in 2004, the acronym FOMO stands for Fear of Missing Out. It refers to the feeling of missing an opportunity or something that other people seem to be enjoying. Inspired by research on people’s experiences on social networking sites, this type of anxiety is often followed by sadness, fear, and a desire to act to receive a reward.

In the world of cryptocurrencies, FOMO refers to the perception of missing out when someone is expecting the current market price to change. They are essentially worried about losing the potential reward if they do not capitalize on the opportunity to trade or invest.

For a crypto investor or buyer, an instant response to such a feeling can have devastating effects. Those who suffer FOMO are most likely to make unexpected or compulsive decisions that defy logical thinking, particularly when they anticipate the value of a digital asset to increase.

Daniel Mercer
Daniel is an experienced author with a background in financial journalism. He writes about digital assets and crypto with a focus on clear, risk-aware explanations rather than hype, approaches price predictions cautiously and prioritises verifiable facts over exaggerated market expectations. When sharing cryptocurrency research and news, exchange reviews, and crypto gambling articles, Daniel's aim is to highlight topics that might not receive the attention they deserve, such as fees, custody, proof of reserves and more. His articles here on TradeBlock are intended for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial advice.