Earlier this year, during the lowest points of the cryptocurrency market where BTC was below USD 4000, one person asked me to compare the current environment to how it was in late 2013, shortly after BTC first broke the USD 1000 mark. Due to the fast-moving nature of the industry, I hardly had time to look back with a wider picture in mind. It was then that I fully appreciated how far the industry has come, as there were numerous things going on that would’ve been major news back then but are normal today.

Growing Maturity: After the burst of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) in 2017 and early 2018, a large amount of the community came and went, understandably so due to the heavy downturn in the market after hitting the peak in December 2017. However, those who have stayed became more critical of the market and became more proactive in validating both whether a new or existing project was a scam or not, as well as if the model of the project made sense. A similar occurrence happened after 2013 where many new coins were being created that were largely simply copies of Bitcoin or Litecoin with minimal changes. During the large bull run then, those coins gained popularity, but most without any innovative features soon fell out-of-favor with the community that stayed after the drop. However, this time the community is considerably larger and better-equipped to handle the next wave of projects introduced into the market, with or without a token of their own, as well as evaluating the ones that are still around. Though not perfect, the community continues to play an important and active role, and it’s getting better at it.

Larger Presence: Though interest level among the general public has waned since the spike in late 2017, combined with the community departure, interest levels remain higher than they were before. For example, searches of the term “cryptocurrency” in August 2019 were eight times higher than they were in January 2017. Mentions of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, though not always in a positive light, in television, film and other media, in addition to news outlets, are starting to become common. Bloomberg, for example, now has a dedicated section for cryptocurrencies on their website. Back in 2013, just a single article there would’ve made shockwaves through the space.

Regulatory: As I mentioned in an article about governments and cryptocurrencies, there have been serious looks into the regulatory aspects around cryptocurrencies and will continue to be the case as the space grows. Though this can create some friction from the perspective of some, for others it makes them more comfortable. This is especially true with businesses that are not only in the industry because of passion, but also to make a profit in the long term. Regulatory clarity, can, if implemented correctly, aid in businesses adopting cryptocurrencies as they minimize uncertainty. Additionally, one notable statistic is that about 100 countries today have since explicitly legalized the status of cryptocurrencies in some form, though not all as a currency. On the other hand, less than 10 have explicitly made them illegal, with the remaining others having significant restrictions or not having any legal stance yet.

Blockchain for Organizations: One point of clarification I made sure to make during my presentation was to clarify the difference when an organization, usually a large one, uses blockchain technology for internal purposes, and when cryptocurrencies are used. The former just simply uses the technology, while the latter uses the technology that is directly connected to the coins that are in the market. For example, a company can copy the code of Ethereum, as it is open source, and implement it in a local environment. While such news is generally good for awareness, it does not directly impact the use of the Ethereum network where ETH coins are used. Nevertheless, the use of the technology can still be beneficial to the overall market, especially if they decide to bridge to the public networks after gaining comfort with their local implementations. Therefore, interest in the technology is still something worth following, though many in the community disagree on the relevancy and whether they are using the technology correctly or not. A notable entity in the space to follow is Hyperledger, a Linux Foundation project launched in 2015. It is a consortium of companies that are interested in the use of blockchain technology and has been the fastest growing Linux Foundation project, having about 270 members today.

Future: The future is always difficult to predict, however, things in the present and the past can help us be prepared for what is to come. That said, I expect the attention into the space, overall, to continue to grow, as long as the spotlights on being able to transact peer-to-peer online without a middleman and being able to take control of one’s own digital assets remains. As the internet continues to gain a share in the activities of our daily lives, the option to have these for the benefits they bring will continue to exist due to the demand of a portion users. With the industry at present, I would expect the number to grow.