Coinshares Reveals Top 10 Crypto Trends in 2019

November 18, 2019 Blockchain, Crypto, Digital Assets, Tokens, CBDCs, Metaverse, NFTs, Enterprise, Entrepreneurs, Start-ups, Small Businesses, FinTech and Alternative Finance, Fintech International, Fundraising, Investing, Trading, Innovation and Resources, Research No comments

Bitcoinist | Christina Comben | Nov 13, 2019

Top 10 Crypto Trends This Year

As CoinShares states at the start of the report, “knowledge is best when shared.” In order for the crypto industry to grow, “participants and outside analysts have to be able to identify, gather, and analyze data to tell the story of why this industry matters.” So, here’s what’s going on right now.

1. Macro Trends Are Setting the Stage for Bitcoin

The report starts out by taking a look at the background of how we got to where we are today. It seems that a whole host of macro trends are combining to create the perfect storm for Bitcoin.

In 2019, there is a growing disparity between rich and poor. Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, and Jeff Bezos own more than the bottom half of Americans.

At the same time, there is increased automation in the workplace, rising political tensions and unrest in countries like Iran, Venezuela, and Hong Kong, and increasing social backlash against capitalism and big tech companies.

See: Lock BTC, Get DAI: Lending Firm Bridges Bitcoin-DeFi Divide in Latin America

This is accompanied by diminishing trust in banks and governments. More than 90% of people consider their government to be corrupt to some extent.

While these external pressures may not seem like crypto trends, they are coming together to “set the stage” for Bitcoin.

2. Hype Has Transitioned to Maturity

In other words? Among the general public, blockchain is getting boring. We’ve seen a transition from emergence and frenzy to synergy and maturity.

Searches for “bitcoin” and “blockchain” are down. Research firm Gartner concluded that most blockchain applications are at least five to 10 years away from having any meaningful impact. This places us in the “trough of disillusionment.”

See: Visa R&D Arm Develops a Blockchain System That Could Replace Financial Data Aggregators

Conference numbers are fewer across the board, there is less overall investment, but the building continues as we begin to mature as an industry.

3. Shift from Consumer to Institutional

Over the last few years of Bitcoin, this is one of the clearest crypto trends we’re seeing–the shift from consumer to institutional.

This has been marked by a move from self-custody solutions, exchanges and wallets, to lending markets and infrastructure being built out for institutional investors. These include solutions like BlockFi and Bakkt.

Moreover, financial institutions are entering the space in the shape of TD Ameritrade, Fidelity, Bloomberg, and Square.

4. From Decentralized to Centralized

The report points out that the championing of decentralization may have been little more than an illusion. It even states that “nothing is decentralized,” including Bitcoin:

As bitcoin companies become more focused on institutional adoption, more bitcoins will be custodied by regulated entities who are subject to oversight.

It also warns to “expect surveillance money, and soon,” as more corporations enter the space with their own “cryptocurrencies” to track and trace our financial movements.

expect surveillance money2 - Coinshares Reveals Top 10 Crypto Trends in 2019

See: Your Complete Guide to Security Token Exchanges

5. The Largest ICOs Failed to Meet Expectations

The top 10 ICOs raised more than $8 billion between them. However, they all fell flat on delivery. Over half of them haven’t launched yet or have dropped out of the market completely.

When it comes to analyzing crypto trends, this highlights that no investment is guaranteed. While ICOs and STOs seem to be pretty much dead, the report points out that the IPO space didn’t do much better either.

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Coinshares 2019 Crypto Trends Research - Download the full 134 pg PDF

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