We have reached a pivotal moment – a turning point – in the evolution of digital currencies. The questions on everyone’s mind are: what comes next and what does it mean?
We've seen the rise and fall of crypto hype, starting with the ICO boom in 2017, followed by a wild bull run in 2021. But chaos reigned in 2022 and 2023 due to fraud and lack of regulation. Europe stepped up with stronger regulations, and countries in Asia and the Middle East grew a liking to crypto. The global cryptocurrency adoption rate is 15 %. Now, in May 2024, crypto is a hot political topic in the US as both parties want the young votes who like cryptocurrency. Meanwhile Scandinavia is sleeping on the issue with only 8% adoption level.
What is next for crypto?
I would say that we are now moving into stable growth and widespread adoption. Sure, we will still speculate in Jenner and Joe Boden tokens.
Fun fact: Caitlyn Jenner launched 12 different meme coins on Solana over 4 days, buying the tokens herself and then selling them for profit… ”I see you Caitlyn, its all on the blockchain.”
But the talk of the town is tokenization. Everything physical will be made digital and tradable. EVERYTHING! With the Ethereum Spot ETF in the U.S., it is clear that the cryptocurrency space is increasingly seen as a productive investment. Blackrock has launched tokenized treasury funds called BUILD with a $375 million market cap and the tokenization race is just starting.
Cryptocurrency is maturing as a consequence of increased regulation, institutional involvement, and technological advancements and integrated into the broader economy. A sign of the maturity of the crypto space is the fact that it will be focusing even more on creating lasting value and utility.
The transition from speculative chaos to a more mature and stable industry is never smooth. There will be challenges and setbacks along the way. Hear me say further scams, rug-pulls, and frauds just like in traditional finance.
Crypto will still attract those looking for get-rich schemes and money will be lost as the average newbie will buy at the top and sell at the bottom. There, in the not-too-distant future, I see clearer regulation, ease of use of crypto, broader adoption globally, and cryptocurrency will be a new playground for Wall Street and traditional finance players.
Let’s not kid ourselves. Traditional finance does not care that Bitcoin is decentralized. The wet dream of cryptocurrency being a separate asset away from the greedy and controlling hands of traditional finance is over.
Hey! It’s about the money. Not financial equality. We need to see that this tiny asset class ($2.68 trillion) is about to be gobbled up by its arch-nemesis. Banks will not go away. CBDC’s are a fact in the next few years and banks are already using blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies in their services.
It’s a love-hate relationship between tradfi and defi, but still a marriage.