What does the next year mean for Bitcoin and altcoin projects? We’ve gathered together the predictions of smart people in the field, from the ascendants to the skeptics.
10 predictions for the future of bitcoin and altcoins
1. There will be epic battles over regulations
No one can predict the exact outcome in the crypto market. As you follow on Kriptokoin.com, calls for regulation increased in 2022. But 2023 will likely be the year when regulatory conflicts finally reach their climax. “Hard crypto regulation will be recommended,” said Laura Shin, host of the ‘Unchained’ podcast. So the community will fight an epic battle to combat the decentralized parts of it.”
2. Web3 platforms will continue to grow
Alex Zhang, de facto head of Friends with Benefits DAO, said, “Market conditions with greater macro downturn will hopefully steer crypto projects away from speculation. It will also shift more towards utility. An important category of benefits is simply meaningful, enjoyable, social experiences,” he says. He expects this to evolve into ‘more meaningful Web3 social platforms and protocols’. It also predicts growth in ‘interoperable identity, on-chain social graphics and crypto-isolated social experiences’.
3. More blood, more loss, more pain…
“The contagion is not over,” says Cas Piancey, co-host of the ‘Crypto Critics’ Corner’ podcast. “Companies, banks and funds are desperately hoping the market will pass the collapse of FTX and Alameda,” Piancey said. Or it focuses strictly on abuses,” he says. He also shares these insights:
However, whether people like it or not, you can’t wish for a credit crunch and exposure to bad counterparties. Because the contagion is so large and so hard to measure for all of us, we’re going to see funds shut down and companies we didn’t expect falter.
4. There will be truly global Bitcoin adoption
“I am disappointed,” says Alex Gladstein, chief strategy officer of the Human Rights Foundation, of the Bitcoin conference he attended. He also said, “I was surprised by the number of Bitcoin entrepreneurs and leaders from many different countries. There were people from rural Cameroon, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, from Somalia, from conflict zones. They’re all just building on Bitcoin. This is legitimately surprising,” he explains. That’s why he says ‘global adoption is probably the number one story for next year.
5. There is life outside of Crypto/Bitcoin/Blockchain!
Bitcoin mega bull Peter McCormack, host of the ‘What Bitcoin Did’ podcast, announces 2023 predictions. He simply says ‘Real Bedford will win the league’. Frankly this is a cheeky joke (McCormack bought the team in 2021). But it contains the core of a deeper truth. Because for many in the space during the crypto winter, it is helpful, even healthy, to focus on other interests.
6. Web3 will be fashionable
“Fashion will continue to lead the way when it comes to Web3 adoption,” says Cathy Hackl, Journey’s chief metaverse officer. According to Hackl, we will see more collaboration between Web3 personalities and consumer and luxury brands looking to explore new business models and customer touchpoints. Hackl’s bonus prediction: “With the rise of productive AI, Blockchain will play an important role in helping us differentiate between AI-generated content and human-generated content.”
7. Keep NFTs full throttle
“The continued high risk appetite in NFT finance in 2022 is a strong indication that it will be one of the first industries to recover next year,” says Burke. He also said, “Over the past year, we’ve started to see large NFT investments from major Web2 brands (Starbucks and Disney) and across Web3. This shows no signs of stopping in 2023. Brands will continue to flock to NFTs,” he predicts.
8. Gaming and DAOs will continue to grow
Burke is similarly on the rise when it comes to gaming. In this regard, “Leading Web3 games in development for some time, including Big Time, Star Atlas, Ember Sword, will finally see the light of day in 2023, either as full-fledged games or as more.” As for decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs)? “The current bear market has forced the industry to pause,” Burke said. However, the growth of new DAOs has picked up speed. It also produced more new DAOs each month in 2022 than we witnessed in 2021.”
9. Major exchanges will become ‘segregated’
Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner of Dragonfly Capital, said, “The stock market pile is unbundling. Just like in traditional finance. We will see that custody, brokerage, and trade/price discovery are broken down into different players. This will make it impossible for another FTX to happen,” he says. Qureshi then makes a parallel guess:
When confidence is low, officials consolidate. People are less likely to trust smaller and weaker players. So Coinbase, Binance, Uniswap gain market share in total. Network effects are strengthened.
10. The area will be reorganized
“Read the room and assess the damage,” says Sandra Ro, CEO of the Global Blockchain Business Council. She then gives some advice for the field in general:
Reorganize with humility. Rebuild with integrity. Regain trust. So, rise again.
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