Main topic: The state of the crypto world and the promising growth of web3 development.
Key points:
1. The crypto world is currently facing challenges, including fewer checks being written and regulatory pressure in the U.S., as well as global economic uncertainty.
2. Despite this, web3 developer activity has continued to grow in the second quarter, with significant installations of Ethereum and crypto wallet software developer kits.
3. Ethereum's price has increased by 53.7% since the beginning of the year, potentially sparking greater interest in the market.
4. The web3 ecosystem is rapidly growing, with more developers contributing to projects and launching web3 apps/games.
5. Other layer-2 blockchains, such as Arbitrum, Optimism, and Polygon, have also seen significant gains.
6. However, NFT trading volume and users have declined, while decentralized finance trading volume has fallen, although the number of users has increased.
7. The increase in DeFi users indicates the stickiness of projects and products in that subsector.
8. Despite current challenges, past cycles suggest a positive outlook for the crypto industry.
Main topic: Decline in venture capital (VC) funding for cryptocurrency startups
Key points:
1. Crypto startups secured the lowest amount of VC funding ($2.3 billion) since Q4 2020 in Q2 2021.
2. Regulatory concerns and crypto market volatility have contributed to the decline in VC funding.
3. Reduced VC funding could hinder innovation and intensify competition among startups in the crypto sector.
Former Goldman Sachs executive Raoul Pal predicts that institutional investment in cryptocurrencies will drive the total market cap to over $10 trillion, more than triple its peak in 2021, as financial institutions follow the lead of family offices in entering the crypto space.
Nvidia's market capitalization surpassed that of the entire crypto market, reaching $1.18 trillion, after the chipmaker reported strong financial results, including double the net profit compared to the previous year, highlighting its leadership in AI hardware production and emphasizing the need for the crypto industry to embrace tokenization for similar growth.
The global gaming console market is projected to reach a market size of USD 47.02 billion by 2030, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 8.5% from 2023 to 2030, driven by the increasing prominence of digital games, subscription-based models, the rise of esports, and the introduction of VR and AR technologies.
Analysts predict that several cryptocurrencies, including InQubeta, Polygon, NEAR Protocol, Sei, and Hedera, have the potential to grow by 1500% in 2023, with InQubeta standing out due to its unique platform that connects AI startups with investors and its impressive growth in the presale stage.
ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood predicts that the market capitalization of cryptocurrencies will increase by over 2,100% in less than seven years, driven by institutional investment and the potential approval of a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), with the total crypto market cap potentially reaching $25 trillion by 2030.
Bitcoin and crypto could experience significant growth in the next few months, with September expected to be a particularly eventful period, including the potential impact of U.S. bitcoin ETF filings and China declaring crypto as "legal property and protected by law."
The price of the CYBER token, which is used for the CyberConnect social media network, has increased by 250% in the past week due to significant interest from traders, despite the overall bearish sentiment in the crypto market. The network has experienced a surge in trading volume and market capitalization, reaching $144 million and $898 million, respectively, and has seen trading volumes of up to $10.8 billion in the past 24 hours. However, there are concerns about whether this surge in value can be sustained, as other similar platforms have previously experienced a decline in popularity shortly after their launch.
The number of Bitcoin wallet addresses reached a new all-time high of 48.24 million, signaling increasing global adoption and reflecting the growing popularity of Bitcoin as a decentralized digital asset.
Crypto funding in August appeared promising with a $819 million investment, but without two large funding rounds, it would have actually shown a decline from July and a significant decline from the same time last year, reflecting a continuing slowdown in the industry.
Despite the uncertain regulatory environment and the current state of the crypto markets, asset managers remain interested in digital assets and expect the industry to grow in the next five years, with many estimating a compound annual growth rate of at least 11%.
Crypto strategist predicts a significant expansion in the digital assets market similar to 2019, with the possibility of a short squeeze after a Bitcoin market correction.
Despite claims of a bear market for cryptocurrencies, indicators such as website traffic suggest that crypto adoption and demand for crypto services have actually been growing in 2023.
Crypto funds have experienced outflows of $455 million over the past nine weeks, with bitcoin accounting for 85% of the outflows, as investors continue to withdraw funds despite recent legal victories for the industry.
Crypto is poised to create a new investable asset class globally and will revolutionize the internet, requiring new business models, metrics, and research structures, as well as a framework to analyze value flows within the tech stack, particularly in relation to Ethereum's layer 2 solutions.
Cryptocurrency funds are expected to grow from $50 billion to $650 billion in the next five years, according to analysts.
Microsoft is reportedly planning to add crypto wallet support to its next Xbox, potentially opening up the market for cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, ethereum, BNB, and XRP to billions of users.
The main barrier to the adoption of crypto is not the user experience, but rather the lack of products that meet people's needs, indicating a product-market fit problem rather than a UX problem. Building crypto products that address core human needs such as belonging, community, and entertainment is crucial for achieving widespread adoption.
Brazil's central bank has observed a significant increase in crypto adoption in the country, leading to plans to tighten digital asset regulations, as imports of crypto rose by 44.2% from January to August 2023 compared to the previous year.
The global blockchain finance market is predicted to become a $79.3 billion industry by 2032, driven by the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the potential for reduced operational costs, with collaborations and acquisitions being heavily explored as a top strategy by market players.
Approximately 50% of crypto users invest in digital assets to improve their everyday living standards, according to a survey by Bitget, with respondents in South Korea, Canada, and Turkey having the highest priority on this goal.
Cryptocurrency investment products experienced inflows of $78 million for the second consecutive week, with volumes of crypto exchange-traded products reaching $1.1 billion and Bitcoin volumes rising by 16%, according to CoinShares.
Crypto investments surged by $78 million, with Bitcoin and Solana leading the way, according to CoinShares' latest investment report. Bitcoin received $43 million in inflows, while Solana experienced its largest weekly inflow since March 2022.
Cryptocurrency trading and lending platform Membrane Labs has raised $20 million in funding to help build a mature trading infrastructure for the crypto industry and increase transparency and risk management.
Crypto investors have moved over $500 million worth of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other digital assets to cryptocurrency exchanges and unknown wallets, according to data from Whale Alert.
Investments in blockchain gaming reached $600 million in the third quarter of 2023, with a total of $2.3 billion invested in the sector this year, despite lower investment levels compared to 2022.
Investors have poured $2.3 billion into the crypto gaming sector in the first nine months of 2023, with $600 million invested in the last quarter, making it the leading decentralized application (DApp) category, according to blockchain intelligence platform DappRadar; however, this figure represents only 30% of last year's total, suggesting external market conditions may be a factor.
The crypto industry in Asia is flourishing as it attracts projects and investors looking to avoid regulatory uncertainties in the US, leveraging favorable policies and growing crypto adoption in the region.
Bitcoin is experiencing a significant increase in the number of large wallets, indicating a rise in investor interest, despite concerns about inflation and the bear market. Gold and silver, on the other hand, are outperforming crypto amid global geopolitical tensions.
The market for tokenized assets, including crypto and traditional financial products, could reach $10 trillion by 2030, according to a report by digital asset manager 21.co, as crypto and traditional finance merge through tokenization.
