What are your wildest guesses for crypto and blockchain technology in the next 5 years? what will the next five years in the crypto space look like? I’ve got two ‘mild’ ones. A fully functional Cardano blockchain and a completely stable Solana blockchain. No pun intended. Cardano and Solana, are certainly up there on my list of high-throughput Layer-1 blockchains. Just in case, Vitalik and his team couldn’t get the Ethereum blockchain to work properly; Charles’ brainchild can make a perfect fix…or alternative. Well, I just made three guesses.
There’s hardly a sector as fast-progressing as the crypto space. Twelve years since bitcoin’s historic emergence, a couple of ‘powerful’ people have taken sides on the idea of a decentralized back-end and financial platform. As powerful as Peter Schiff and Nancy Pelosi. Despite the pull sideways (not from those two anyways); cryptocurrency has progressed rapidly and dog-themed coins are worth more than the global pet market…not just pet dogs. Depending on how famous or lucky you are; you could sell your selfies for a couple of thousand dollars. Of course, the price will depend on how rare or adult-specific they are. Or how strong your hype-marketing game is. Just a heads up anyways.
For the technology; instead of Western Union, you can simply move your funds through Ethereum blockchain. On the worst days, that might cost you as much as $70, but that’s fine, considering how many more you have in your wallet. Lazslo Hanyeczs pizza deal didn’t just trigger a $3 trillion move, it set off a period of “on-chain” technological advancement. Even though these solutions are barely used by the majority, they are still worth more than their mainstream alternatives…some, not all of them anyways.
The past twelve years have been lots of fun, literally. The memes and their accompanying coins made sure of that. The future looks even more interesting, both ways. Not trying to make some oracular statements, but the next few years will be one to behold and are very important to the future of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology; the technology and the politics…sorry, market.
Government influence, decentralized applications, stablecoins, graphic stores of value…you name them. The next 5 years are already being shaped by the preceding years. If Mr. Schiff and rest of the gold community fail to prove the inferiority of bitcoin or the supremacy of their precious metal; bitcoin will be on the course to cement its place as a turbo-proofed store of value. Despite being held back by the bear market currently, it’s still bullish heading into the future. The next halving is barely two years away…
The US and UAE governments announced their plans to regulate digital assets and tasked designated arms with putting their nations at the forefront of digital asset growth. I’d say those announcements came when the bearish sentiments already kicked in; would have been enough to push bitcoin past $100, 000. Nevertheless, positive impacts from central governments will be instrumental to the growth of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in the next 5 years. Trusting the central government to come up with positive plans for decentralized technologies is a bit double-edged anyway. This could go either way, of course. Cryptocurrency and blockchain technology have survived over a decade of rough paths with central governments, the next few years should be easier.
If Celsius hadn’t hit a rock, DeFi would have stood a chance of penetrating mainstream financial support systems. I guess they’ll have to fix their leaking roof before that. Albeit these negative events, the future still looks great for decentralized finance, Celsius inclusive. Cryptocurrency communities are evolving to truly fancy the idea of decentralization. The world outside the crypto space suffers much from centralized financial systems. DeFi, if done well, will take up this opportunity and offer a solution. A seamless and community-owned financial system.
Luna developers failed in their attempt to build an efficient algorithmic stable coin that follows the laws of demand and supply. USDC was meant to “die in the hands” of UST. Unfortunately, that didn’t go as planned and Do Kwon will have to deal with strangers knocking on his doors and the billion-dollar fraud allegations first before putting USDC to eternal rest. That sounds easier than it really is. The failure of Terra’s UST casts a shade on the growth of algorithmic stablecoins; but before this event, this concept was growing and was on track to pose a huge challenge for stablecoins backed by air and efficient printers. Algorithmic stablecoins still have a place in the crypto space and still have good chances of being the preferred medium of value preservation in the crypto space. If not for any reason, the fact that they are backed by the same concept that powers the whole space — logic, makes them more traditional.
NFTs might not sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars in the next five years, but they will still be a part of the space. Any celebrity selling some “rare behind the scene” pictures might have to settle for less than they charge for a feature as royalties for their NFT drops. Signatures of those arts are forever etched on the blockchain, so, they will always be there…just that they could cost (way) less.
More on the future? Maybe a brand-new hype idea? Metaverse is already building a huge hype, the next bull run could see many Meta pumps and dumps emerge. Ethereum 2.0 will probably be finally delivered before then; interesting to imagine what could happen over the years. What’s your wild guess?
