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Altcoin Evolution – Part V: The Closing Recap

Throughout the “Altcoin Evolution” series, we have taken a closer look at the potential gains and pitfalls that will define the path forward for cryptocurrencies not named Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH). 

 

The behemoths of the crypto market have clearly set themselves apart from the rest of the pack, and while they may be subject to these potential outcomes, it’s fair to say – at least today – that these cryptos have a completely different perspective than virtually any other crypto or blockchain project. 

 

That being said, what can altcoins do to gain traction and become more competitive on a larger scale? Let’s recap what we’ve covered throughout this series. 

Sign On The Dotted Line

We highlighted a few projects, particularly around the booming NFT space, that have done this quite well. Sign contracts. Find partners. Make connections. As the broader crypto industry continues to assess what altcoins can provide to daily operations, there are sure to be consistent opportunities. Having a foot in the door when these situations arise is almost certainly beneficial. 

 

Arguably the most compelling argument for the evolution of altcoins is to specialize one particular aspect (low gas fees for transactions, speed, etc.), but be capable in a variety of areas. Of course, projects are going to want to maximize value by having technical capabilities across the board that are ahead of the curve.

 

However, taking the technical and foundation aspects aside, what we honed in on most was the “extras” for altcoins – the selling points that aren’t inherent to the blockchain technology being used on certain projects. This is why NFTs made for great examples. A majority of NFTs work off of Ethereum, which is known for having higher transaction costs. So how can projects find other selling points to grab ahold of? That’s what we’ve looked to address in the duration of “Altcoin Evolution.”

Polygon is a prime example in our ‘versatility’ bucket for it’s wide applications across the crypto space.| Source: MATIC-USD on TradingView.com

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Stand Out Or Sit Down

In Part I, we laid out the groundwork for the inherent challenges that crypto projects often face in the market. We went on to discuss those with more depth in the following three pieces in the series. 

 

We started off with accessibility. With emerging exchanges and platforms, accessibility becomes an increased focal point for rising altcoins. Platforms like UniSwap and SushiSwap have increased accessibility for intermediate consumers. All the while, more widely-used platforms such as Coinbase have placed an emphasis on supporting more tokens. Of course, it takes technological fundamentals, a strong whitepaper, and great marketing even just to be considered for some of the more well-known exchanges and platforms. 

 

By Part III of the series, we began to start scratching the surface of nailing down the importance of a digestible use case. This can often come as shifts in global activity come over time. For example, the economic impacts of COVID-19 are often cited as a growth driver for projects like Axie Infinity, which has taken a prominent position in the NFT marketplace. Axies have essentially formed internet economies that individuals in developing countries can utilize. 

Altcoin Evolution: It’s A Wrap

In our final discussion around challenges for emerging projects, we highlighted a number of different “buckets” that we often see some of the best altcoin sales pitches utilize. Some projects lean into more than one of these buckets: Partnerships & IP, Aggressive Interest Rates / Rewards, Decentralization, Versatility, and Low Cost.

 

Before we close the books on “Altcoin Evolution,” let’s take a closer look at prime examples of each of these buckets that are executing today. Earlier in the series, we highlighted the OMI token and the associated ECOMI project, who have sealed NFT partnerships with companies like Marvel on their VeVe marketplace. 

 

DeFi and CeFi companies like BlockFi, Nexo, and Celsius have been offering aggressive interest rates for storing tokens on their respective platforms; these firms have built massive enterprises simply off of loaning crypto and incentivizing crypto consumers to hold their tokens with these platforms, providing interest rates substantially more aggressive than what we’ve seen in traditional banking. 

 

Decentralization is a core component of almost any crypto project – although many projects can be significantly more centralized than others. However, the crypto community has long recognized the importance of decentralization. One example of this recognition is NFT marketplace Rarible’s recent move to a more decentralized format, implementing $RARE tokens and giving platform users a greater voice in the future of Rarible. 

 

Versatility can often be seen in projects like Cardano or Polygon. Both respective projects flex the versatility muscle, working across a variety of spaces. Both projects have been building ecosystems around DeFi, smart contracts, NFTs, and a whole lot more. 

 

Finally, the attribute of low cost can often draw in mass consumers. Dogecoin has often had major appeal from it’s cheap price relative to other tokens, and many mainstream Bitcoin critics have said that the high price of one BTC would dissuade new potential crypto consumers from buying in. While this can be positioned as a mental battle, it is still one that is present in today’s crypto discussions, and there is an appeal to having a cheaper token for many emerging projects. 

 

That closes the books on “Altcoin Evolution.” We appreciate you stopping by each week and look forward to our next altcoin-focused series. 

 

Our team at NewsBTC provides a special thank you to Jerry Sena for his insight, feedback and contributions to this series.

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The Altcoin Evolution – Part IV: The Challenges – The Sales Pitch

With the ever-changing landscape of tech development and crypto innovation, regulation tends to lag behind in order to have time to react to what’s happening. Many altcoin projects are currently growing exponentially as they are exploring largely untouched use cases. As the tech continues to proliferate and expand, more and more “problems” are arising that require solutions. 

 

This obviously provides more space for viable contenders to occupy in a crowded market. This provides a robust growth argument for many altcoins, but there is a catch. The giant growth gains are fantastic, but we also must consider that large corporate banks do not tend to react positively to any challenges to their dominance of the financial industry. The Federal Reserve and other federal government bodies certainly have an eye open to the chaos as well. Ripple (XRP) is a prime example of this, as the project has been experiencing ongoing back-and-forth dialogue with the SEC for some time now, all while still sitting in the top 10 of token market caps.

The Altcoin Evolution: The Lay Of The Land

At this point, it’s rather difficult to predict the trajectory of these contingencies. Regulation is always a few steps behind, but it is a certainty. Despite these hurdles, which are far-reaching and constantly evolving, every project must have growth objectives. As we have with past publications of “Altcoin Evolution”, we will continue to look at the emergence of projects impacting creators, such as those involving NFTs, as prime examples of how difficult these challenges can be for altcoins. 

 

In our last two “Altcoin Evolution” articles, we took a bird’s eye view on the challenges, implications, and importance of factors like use case and accessibility. Now, we’ll take a high level look at the importance of altcoins having a sales pitch. In a world where constraints around marketing and visibility are ever-present, leveraging the aforementioned use case and accessibility assets for projects is vital in “selling” how respective projects stand out.

Polygon has been leveraging it’s versatility and low gas fees as major selling points in the DeFi market. | Source: MATIC-USD on TradingView.com

Related Reading | Cardano Founder Responds To Criticism Over New Crypto Partnership

Setting The Stage

As mentioned in the previous iteration of “Altcoin Evolution”, the brass at OnlyFans attempted to rebrand themselves as a non-pornographic site, in order to further align themselves with the values of banks that do business with them. At the time of writing, there has been such a huge backlash that the company has been forced to rescind the proposed changes, after receiving assurances that the banks will “support all genres of creators”. 

 

This whirlwind news story is a perfect example of how unique digital currencies can instantly have a utility from where there was none. What projects can take advantage of these opportunities, and have the ‘stickiness’ of a sales pitch that can resonate with crypto consumers?

 

2021 has been a booming year for altcoins. At the beginning of the year, bitcoin made up about 70% of the crypto market. By July, that number was down to about 48%, according to TradingView. There are over 10,000 altcoins all vying for a slice of this growing market. 

Whether a project is a meme token, a DeFi utilization tool, or an NFT platform, one thing remains constant: increasing accessibility and informing consumers about ubiquitous project utilization will be paramount in selling a project to potential investors or users.

Break Down The Buckets

We see altcoins best sales pitches carrying typically one (or sometimes multiple) numbers of these buckets:

  • Partnerships & IP: Most often utilized in NFT projects but also running the gambit in crypto, partners or IP of value can make crypto projects special and unique – all the project has to do is utilize them appropriately. Loud advocates (see: Elon Musk and Dogecoin) in this case fall into the ‘partners’ bucket, despite often being informal ones. 
  • Aggressive Interest Rates Or Rewards: Airdrops are often a hot topic in crypto, and aggressive interest rates from DeFi and CeFi lending platforms have built massive firms in short time with companies like BlockFi and Celsius. Rewarding platform users sustainably is a sales asset that is tough to top. Crypto consumers are increasingly savvy on what means of rewards are sustainable and viable for long-term engagement.
  • Decentralization: Crypto’s core is decentralization, so centralized platforms often get flak for this exact reason. Rarible is an NFT platform that recently unveiled a model of increased decentralization with mostly positive feedback. 
  • Versatility: Polygon ($MATIC) has gained major ground in the DeFi landscape for it’s scalability and adaptability. 
  • Low Cost: At the end of the day, the cost can be king. Many users have flocked to low-cost tokens simply for the ability to buy a cheaper token, and additional price factors (such as gas fees) often get factored into the equation by more savvy veterans. 

 

These are the major buckets that crypto projects can lean on to spread word with consumers. How they go about spreading that word has often boiled down to building community – which is why Discord and Telegram have become so prominent for crypto users. 

 

That wraps up “Altcoin Evolution” with regards to challenges for emerging altcoins. In our final installment next week, we will wrap up the series with a summarizing piece that recaps everything we’ve covered so far, and answers the simple question… what should altcoins be doing in today’s market?

 

Thanks for stopping by – we’ll see you next week.

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The Altcoin Evolution – Part III: The Challenges – Use Case & Value

In the last episode of “Altcoin Evolution”, we discussed hurdles that can prevent more casual crypto investors from acquiring some of the more obscure altcoins. Obviously, accessibility to investment is paramount to getting in the hands of consumers, and for projects to continue their own ‘evolution’. Despite continued market-wide shifts to make crypto more easily accessible, the road is still long and tumultuous.

 

Another “crypto-winter” is never out of the question, and how broader society at large adapts to digital currencies is still yet to be determined. Still, the potential hazards are flanked by the vast amount of potential upside with the developing tech and consistent emerging projects in the space.

The Altcoin Evolution: You’ve Got Questions, We’ve Got… More Questions?

Beyond last week’s coverage around accessibility, another variable arises in crypto from attaching tangible function to different coins. The questions are practically endless: What is the purpose of the project and token? How does it integrate into our current financial industry (or into other industries such as art and culture, or information systems)? Does the project have its own form of blockchain, or is it operating on one of the larger, more established arenas? Unique value propositions are paramount in any project, and these could include any number of things that can be derived from any of these questions.

 

Some coins are designed with specific usages in mind, often on existing blockchains, and are typically referred to as “utility tokens”. Let’s elaborate further: tokens generally break down into one of two buckets – utility tokens or security tokens. The differentiator between the two has by and large been established as the SEC’s Howey Test, which historically has been used to define a securities contract. Utility tokens are predominantly providing consumers with a product or service, rather than being seen as a traditional investment vehicle. Security tokens’ value proposition is typically pretty straight-forward, however things are not typically as clear with utility tokens in today’s landscape.

 

A majority of these tokens, especially around the NFT space (which we’ve regularly turned to throughout this series), are currently working on the Ethereum blockchain. This applies to ECOMI (and it’s OMI token), as well as some of the original projects on Flow that existed before the FLOW token (such as CryptoKitties), both of which are referenced in earlier installments of this series. These were designed with the concept of providing access to goods/services, such as NFT collectibles, creating an economy based around exchange of the coin. In essence, a marketplace functioning sans fiat currency.

ECOMI is built on the back on the backbone of the Ethereum network. | Source: OMI-USDT on TradingView.com

Related Reading | Bitcoin Poised To Explode Above $50K?, Why Fundamentals Shout More Profits

Is It, Or Isn’t It?

Of course, the lines between utility are often far from being black and white. Some NFT critics suggest that for the likes of NBA Top Shot, Topps MLB, or ECOMI, IP integration won’t be enough to carry the load. Critics of other NFT projects, like CryptoPunks or Bored Ape Yacht Club, often argue that the communities generated from this projects won’t have staying power (despite prices for CryptoPunks being as high as ever, approaching year five of the project).

 

Furthermore, while emerging and established NFT projects make for prime examples in this conversation, these criticisms don’t start or finish with NFTs. For many years now, the biggest Cardano (ADA) critics have furrowed their brow that the utility and use case around the coin was not clear and well-defined. Despite this, Cardano is the third largest cryptocurrency by market cap. Talk about an altcoin evolution.

 

Our objective here isn’t to make an argument for or against any of these projects, but only to emphasize that dialogue in the crypto-community around utility is ever-present. After all, the value of IP is often arbitrarily assigned even in contexts outside of crypto.

Don’t Stop Now… It’s More Than IP

Furthermore, utility of course doesn’t stop or start with just IP either. Writer and founder Zoe Scaman outlined her recent perspective of “five key components of a crypto-native, fandom-centric brand”. The core components include Worldbuilding & Narrative, Cultivating Community, Status & Access, Open IP, and Shared Equity. These traits undoubtedly outline “value”, but the measuring stick is as unclear as ever. The bearish perspective would likely suggest that even these core components aren’t enough for true longevity, while the bullish perspective would state that these qualities can build NFT projects that will last a lifetime. Like many things in life, the reality likely lands somewhere in the middle of it all. 

 

In all, the concept and evolution of utility coins is still relatively new and fresh – even when compared to the phenomenon of digital currency as a whole. The wild west is an apt metaphor for the developing landscape of purpose driven coins. However, as society’s reliance on digital innovation continues to gain ground, so does the opportunity for crypto projects to find more platforms to exercise use case.

 

A prime example just this week was the decision-making at OnlyFans, as reported on at our sister network at Bitcoinist. As the site reportedly tightens down on adult content, the need for a decentralized, creator-first platform becomes abundantly clear. Many have speculated that some sort of crypto solution, such as the Bitcoin Lightning Network, could fill the void.

 

As DeFi and other use-case driven crypto projects inevitably move forward, there will be even more utility opportunities and functionality needs. The difficult part is valuing them. For emerging tokens and projects, demonstrating the problem and how the project addresses the problem, is vital.

 

In next week’s “Altcoin Evolution,” we’ll take a look at the final set of challenges – ‘selling’ a project or token to the general public and what it takes for crypto projects to stand out.

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The Altcoin Evolution – Part II:

Last week we introduced ‘Altcoin Evolution’, NewsBTC’s latest series discussing the market-wide challenges that altcoins face in coming to market. We’ll take a look at a bird’s eye view of a number of different challenges that altcoins face in the general market, starting first with accessibility. 

 

Our framework in outlining these challenges will generally be presented from a U.S. consumers point of view, as some of the exchanges, projects, etc. may not be accessible yet globally – which speaks to the very nature of the topic at hand. We’ll also be looking at these processes and challenges through the lens of a very casual to intermediate crypto consumer – one who has a solid understanding of the broader landscape, but not necessarily the deep depth of more advanced crypto-native consumers.

Nailing Down The Challenges: Making A Purchase

Undoubtedly the most difficult challenge for emerging projects – those like ECOMI (which we mentioned in last week’s ‘Altcoin Evolution’), or Dapper Labs FLOW token (from the creators of NBA Top Shot), is accessibility. FLOW and OMI tokens typically sit somewhere around the top 100 in market cap, making them big enough to be on the radar but not a substantial threat to become an immediate top 20 token. 

 

Let’s look at the very basics of securing these type of assets. Acquiring the OMI coin, for example, involves setting up an account on Bitforex, Gate.io, or OKEx, all of which are generally lesser known crypto exchanges relative to the mainstream players such as Crypto.com, Binance, Coinbase, FTX, etc. 

 

Our team took the step-by-step process of buying some OMI tokens to compare it to the major exchanges that more casual consumers are frequenting. We utilized Bitforex in this case, due to it’s reliable crypto reputation and ability to offer a generally wider array of altcoins than many exchanges, with over 150 tokens supported. We chose XLM to transfer funds to the Bitforex account to take advantage of lower transfer fees compared to many other major tokens (fees can vary widely amongst different currencies, so it will be wise to do some research as to how to minimize costs when looking at acquiring your desired token).

 

Certain cryptocurrencies, such as XLM, may require more info than a typical wallet QR code as well. If a TAG/MEMO is supplied, it must be used in order to prevent delays, or even potential loss of transfer funds. You could consider the TAG/MEMO line as an apartment number, whereas the QR code is acting as the apartment building. 

 

One difference here compared to the Coinbase trading process, for example, is that you must first transfer your funds from your Bitforex wallet to a spot/trading account on Bitforex, which allows for instantaneous exchanges on the platform. The next step required that we exchange XLM tokens to Tether, the dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT. After that conversion was complete, we were able to purchase the OMI coin.

 

As you can see, relative to many of the streamlined purchasing processes that are headlining the mainstream markets, there are a few more hoops to jump through. These extra steps often not seen with simple BTC or ETH purchases on more popular exchanges can impose underrated limitations on potential investors acquiring tokens – be it OMI or otherwise. 

 

At its core, casual consumers are less likely to put in the legwork of learning about the process if they aren’t already familiar. 

Prominent altcoin FLOW is leveraging premier partners to increase awareness, but the token will need more exchange support to increase consumer accessibility. | Source: FLOW-USD on TradingView.com

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The Next ‘Accessible’ Step: How Altcoin Projects Can Appease Major Exchanges

As crypto has gained it’s legitimacy over the years, with that has come policy frameworks for major exchanges in how they go about supporting new tokens. 

 

Let’s look at major crypto exchange Coinbase. The company has historically implemented a core set of standards for crypto asset issuers – centered around conformity to Coinbase core values, technology, compliance, market supply, market demand, and crypto-economics. In January, however, the company introduced the Coinbase Asset Hub.

 

Just a short time later, in early May, Coinbase posted a guide to listing assets on the exchange on their blog page. Major sticking points that were called out in the blog included source code adherence to industry standards, the degree of centralization (which can dictate the amount of collusion that is possible within the project), and carrying a real and supportable use case (more on this on our next section of ‘Altcoin Evolution’). 

 

Despite this, Coinbase is still looking to streamline the asset listing process even further, too. In a blog post in June, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong cited one of three main opportunities for the firm as bringing “more assets to Coinbase, faster.” That message came as the firm announced plans to launch to a DeFi ‘crypto app store’.

 

Despite these uphill battles around accessibility, the future generally seems to be bright for emerging projects that are looking to increase their exposure. As the broader crypto space grows and matures, exchanges look to streamline their processes – legitimate projects will likely be given the platforms needed to rise to the top. 

 

On next week’s ‘Altcoin Evolution,’ we will review one of those major sticking points that Coinbase calls out in their listing asset guide – use case and value. We’ll look at the importance of these traits and how projects can showcase them. 

 

See you next week!

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The Altcoin Evolution – Part I: Introduction

Mainstream adoption for emerging altcoin projects is a constant topic within the crypto community that might be a conversation that exists in perpetuity. Most notably because the idea of “adoption” in crypto isn’t tangible or measurable. What does mainstream success look like, and how does it fit with crypto’s inherently decentralized nature? It’s a long road to travel for altcoins to find success in the current landscape. This new series will take a look at some of the primary hurdles that altcoins face today.

Emerging Projects: Overcoming Challenges

Throughout this series we’ll be thinking about small-cap, yet to emerge coins. BTC and ETH have gone full-fledged mainstream, and now there have been a fairly abundant amount of emerging cryptocurrencies that have clawed their way to the most ‘accessible’ exchanges, such as Coinbase, Binance, etc. Accordingly, the so-called “Coinbase effect” in crypto is very much a real thing, and there are some obvious reasons for that: most notably, wide stream visibility and accessibility. This is exemplified by crypto rumors of an altcoin being listed to Coinbase leading to immediate jumps in price as aggressive traders look to “beat the Coinbase hype”. 

 

However, there are also a wide array of crypto projects headed down different roads, all vying for that next step opportunity as well. As with most things in finance, there are no shortage of hurdles for all of these prospective risers. That being said, there are a few options that have potential to make large runs toward ‘mainstream’ acceptance. ECOMI, for instance, is establishing mainstream IP NFT partnerships with major entertainment properties like Marvel, Activision, Capcom, and more. However, while the NFT space has seen exponential growth this year, it is still relatively unknown to the average layman.

 

Despite more and more integration into traditional finance atmospheres, there is still a long road to travel for the development of altcoins into the mainstream financial consumer. Accordingly, ECOMI’s native token, OMI, is substantially more difficult to acquire than your run-of-the-mill projects that dominate the headlines. This series will take a dive into how legitimate crypto projects can work their way into more mainstream acceptance. We’ll also look at some of the inherent challenges and hurdles that projects have to overcome. 

 

As the market continues to grow, NFT digital collectibles are becoming a source of revenue for musicians, artists, and even sports teams and leagues (most notably projects like NBA Topshot). This increase in distribution shows promise to continue the push of this NFT phenomenon front and center in the eyes of the general public, and more importantly, potential investors. Throughout this series, we’ll often look at NFT projects, such as ECOMI’s, as prime examples in addressing the unique roadblocks that crypto projects often face. 

The ‘Altcoin Evolution’ series will look at altcoins such as OMI as examples for projects that are looking to grab mainstream market share. | Source: OMI-USDT on TradingView.com

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It’s Not Always Easy

Despite having the aforementioned partnerships with strong IP properties, the OMI token has a market cap that barely cracks into the top 100 of crypto tokens on the market, despite being a unique project in the marketplace when it comes to established partnerships relative to the competition. Although the token is difficult to acquire currently relative to many comparable projects, this may actually be a benefit to potential investors seeking to find the next hot thing at the ground floor. If the platform continues to proliferate content creators with established brands, there may be an opportunity to become an early adopter of digital collectibles.

 

Volatile, lower-cap assets are of course, immeasurably difficult when it comes to trajectory projections. These coins not only are subject to the upcoming (and ongoing) regulation changes and economic uncertainty (to an increased extent relative to the major tokens on the market, at that), but also have yet to prove true long-term stability, or growth capability. Another cliche most certainly applies here, as this is certainly positioned in the broader crypto market as a high risk, high reward play for potential investors.  

 

Additionally, if the casual consumer is interested in ECOMI’s project, and wants to acquire OMI tokens, like many emerging projects – there are substantial market barriers in doing so. While market barriers have been slowly streamlined to the everyday consumer since the early days of crypto, there is likely still miles of roadway left to go when it comes to a truly streamlined process for established, yet emerging projects. The OMI coin does already have actual utility on the VEVE marketplace, where it is the currency of choice. VEVE is an NFT digital collector’s space/auction site, where users exchange digital collectibles. This is where those corporate connections make OMI uniquely placed to have tangible function going forward. Users of the VEVE marketplace are exchanging fiat currency to OMI in order to purchase collectibles, often without even knowing that the OMI coin is involved, which provides another glimpse into the potential utility of the coin going forward. This can be likened to the experience on NBA Top Shot as well, where users are buying, selling, and even gifting NFTs on the FLOW blockchain, all without any sort of interaction with the FLOW token itself. 

 

This will be the framework for the ‘Altcoin Evolution’ series. Next week, we will break down our first initial challenge for altcoins – accessibility for more casual consumers. For the next several weeks, we will break down a number of different challenges before finally wrapping the series up with a closing summary that outlines these challenges in full, and how emerging altcoin projects can address them.

 

Stay tuned, and we’ll see you next week!

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