2017 saw in the neighborhood of $1 billion in investment enter the crypto market. All signs are pointing toward 2018 seeing a decline in new ventures, but according to market research by Global Market Insights investments are expected to rise again, and to reach as high as $16 billion annually by 2024.
Venture Capital Driving Growth
The driving force behind these investments is expected to be venture capitalists, as aspect which should not be entirely unexpected. For all the promise of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology, we are still in the early days of development and adoption, with many of the most significant projects in the space still relying on unproven tech and the promise of future growth.
The Financial Industry is beginning to see the benefits blockchain can bring to their institutions, in the form of cross-border payments, trade finance and time stamped documentation, etc., and the desire to invest in experimental technology exists.
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) has recently received approval for the creation of a first of its kind Blockchain Bond, which will be traded and managed using distributed ledger technology – in other words, ownership of the bond will take the same form as ownership of Bitcoin. It will be a cryptocurrency.
Victory Square Technologies, a Canadian venture capitalist firm specialized in tech startups, similarly announced recently that they would host the 2018 global summit on Virtual and Artificial Reality. The 2017 summit counted some 5000 attendants, with speakers from NASA, IBM, and the Vatican, among many others.
Cryptocurrency Startups on the Rise
New for this year will be a contest for immersive technology start-ups, including several crypto projects hoping to make an impression on the venture capitalists and industry leaders in attendance.
With the decline in returns on ICOs and the many straight up scam projects that have cropped up in the last few years, there is also an increasing need for crypto startups for these venture capitalists.
The days of ICOs may not be entirely over, and perhaps they will make a come back in the next bull market, but these are lean days for crypto projects hoping to finance development with a public sale.
As such, venture capitalists represent one of the best and most accessible ways for new projects in crypto to finance initial development. And as venture capitalists succeed in the crypto space, they will help legitimize crypto to others in the Financial and other Industries and bring us, slowly but surely, into the mainstream.
