Fireside Crypto: MOON in 2 Months??!!!!
Description
With major conferences like Consensus 2018, serious money will start eye discussing cryptocurrencies. Projects will also start to deliver this year - with a decentralized future looking more and more ...
AI Analysis
Here's a breakdown of what's happening in the crypto world, from market movements to institutional interest and the crucial need for projects to deliver.
The crypto market has been fluctuating around the $10,000 Bitcoin mark, with most other top coins mirroring Bitcoin's performance. This period, following the huge surge in late 2017/early 2018, feels a bit stagnant, but it's actually a necessary cooling-off period where the industry needs to prove its real-world utility beyond just hype. This year is all about weighing the pros and cons of different blockchain technologies and seeing which ones actually deliver.
Here’s what’s really going on:
* Current Market Dynamics: After the exhilarating boom in late December and early January, things have settled down. Bitcoin has been wobbling around the $10,000 mark, and most other major cryptocurrencies seem to be directly pegged to its movements, showing similar growth and dip patterns. This has led to a feeling of "boredom" in the market, as no single coin is really standing out right now. It's a wake-up call for the crypto revolution to move beyond just excitement and show tangible results.
* Beyond the Dot-Com Comparison: It's a mistake to simply apply lessons from the dot-com bubble to cryptocurrencies. The underlying technologies are vastly different, and each coin has its own unique design and application. For example, Bitcoin and Ethereum prioritize decentralization through Proof of Work (PoW) mining, allowing anyone to contribute. In contrast, coins like NEO use Delegated Byzantine Fault Tolerance (dBFT), which is more closed off, requiring 66% or more of nodes to cooperate. Then there are newer "blockchain 2.0/3.0/4.0" projects, like Ryblox with its block lattice, that operate on fundamentally different principles. There's no single "best" technology; each involves compromises, and this year will be crucial for evaluating their real-world use cases.
* Growing Institutional Interest and OTC Markets: There's a significant buzz from institutional clients like banks and large investment firms, especially in places like Hong Kong. Over-the-counter (OTC) trade counters, which handle larger crypto-to-fiat and fiat-to-crypto exchanges, are seeing a lot of interest. These big players are opening accounts and getting ready, but they’re not rushing in with their money yet. They're sitting on the sidelines, waiting for cryptocurrencies to prove themselves as serious investments rather than just hype. They want to see tangible progress and stability.
* Serious Recognition in Government: Even in the US, the Senate discussions, featuring the SEC chair and CTFC chair, showed a serious tone regarding the future of cryptocurrencies. It’s no longer just a playful bet on "Jesus coin" or Dogecoin; it's about how this technology can fundamentally change industries and build new projects. This shift in perception from regulators is a huge step forward.
* ConsenSys 2018: The Moment of Truth for Projects: A major event coming up is ConsenSys 2018, scheduled for May 14th to 16th. In 2017, it drew 2,700 attendees, with 35% being C-level executives. This year, it's expected to be a gathering point for these executives to seriously discuss crypto technology. Crucially, it will be a time for projects from the previous year to present and demonstrate what they’ve actually achieved. It’s easy to talk about dreams and visions, but if you can’t deliver, there's a problem.
* The Critical Need for Delivery: This year, project delivery is absolutely key. We've seen successful projects like Binance emerge as a top exchange, and Basic Attention Token (BAT) launching its Brave browser with YouTube support. Now, other projects like VeChain, which aims to solve real-world problems like counterfeiting, need to launch their mainnets and start shipping actual products. Conferences like ConsenSys are prime opportunities for them to show their progress and deliver on promises.
* Mainstream Education and Adoption: Beyond major conferences, local gatherings and workshops in places like Hong Kong are seeing a surge in popularity. Traditional financial institutions and banks are attending these in-depth sessions to learn about crypto. The reason? Cryptocurrencies can no longer be ignored. This widespread push for understanding is a very bullish sign.
* Crypto's Disruptive Potential: Banks, as trusted entities, facilitate transactions and contracts between parties. However, smart contracts can start to replace this function by enabling trustless escrow and agreements. As long as proof of delivery can be provided, funds can be transferred automatically and without bias, since software has none. The Bank of America’s recent report to the SEC expressed concern about crypto's disruptive potential and their lack of a solution. This disruption, where smart contracts can replace many banking functions, is a huge reason why traditional financial institutions are either concerned or eager to learn how to adapt and even start their own ventures in this space.
* Long-Term Bullishness: This increasing institutional interest, the serious discussions by regulators, and the disruptive power of decentralization through smart contracts make me extremely bullish on the long-term potential of cryptocurrencies. Decentralization has the power to bring significant benefits to the world by streamlining processes and removing intermediaries.
* Building a Strong Community: Building a strong, knowledgeable community is crucial. The goal is to learn how to understand cryptocurrencies, develop a fundamental grasp of current projects, and gain the confidence to research new ones. A strong community working together is vital for navigating the evolving crypto landscape and identifying the best projects and insights. The Telegram channel will soon be reopened to foster this collaborative environment.
Transcript
Hey everyone and welcome back to Box Mining. So today is going to be a fireside crypto chat where I talk about what's really happening around in the cryptocurrency scene. So this will cover discussion topics and kind of my opinion on what's going on especially in concern to what I think is going to happen to the future of cryptocurrencies. So I do want to say before we start that everything covered here is my personal opinion not financial advice and I would really appreciate if you share this ...