Projects
This will be my final post on cryptocurrency for a while. I’ve spoken about the most popular cryptocurrencies and the platforms and blockchains that this technology is built upon. I plan to dive a little deeper into the projects that have caught my eye and some that have gone on some huge runs and gained a lot of traction over the last few months. These Dapps and Blockchains show the scope of this technology and as always, this is for me to learn more about these projects and help me explain what exactly I’m putting my money into.
Theta is “A new, native blockchain purpose-built to power decentralized video delivery.” How it works is users host the network by spinning up a node. You are paid in Theta fuel to host a node and you spend the Theta fuel to watch videos. This creates a loop of supporting the network and the ability to use the platform. Decentralised hosting enables faster streaming speeds and lets people in poorer communities watch videos more reliably and in better quality. Users can also reward content creators directly without the platform taking a cut. Theta has knowledgeable media advisors, and an experienced team and has partnered up with big brands like Samsung VR, Pandora.tv and G Fuel. This project is still in its early stages but has caught the market’s attention as it has been on a huge run from around a $1 billion market cap to about $12 billion just this year. This isn’t a YouTube replacement, but rather another option for content creators. As Wes Levitt put it,
Chilliz is a project that is acting as a gateway into the cryptocurrency world. Yes, some would say that Dogecoin is doing that right now, but I’m not sure how long the Doge hype will last.
“Chilliz is a currency option for blockchain-backed products & services geared towards mainstream consumers. We want to elevate everyday experiences – fan engagement in entertainment, alternative payment solutions for conventional products, and more.
Chiliz provides sports & entertainment entities with blockchain-based tools to help them engage & monetize their audiences.”
Chiliz enables you to buy tokens created by your favourite sports teams or organisations. They have some of the biggest football teams in Europe onboard and a UFC token is coming soon. These fan tokens provide holders with the opportunity of unique fan experiences like meeting the players and custom merch. They can feel part of the team they support and even vote on certain team decisions. This opens a whole new stream of revenue for the teams and organisations involved and gives a new sense of community to the fans who have been supporting the teams for years. They have started with European football teams and are slowly branching out. They already have teams like Juventus, Barcelona, Manchester City and PSG on board.
This project can really get supporters involved and help people understand how blockchain technology works.
Trustswap describes itself as “a full-service digital asset ecosystem.” The services they provide are swaps, staking, minting, smart locks, smart swaps and its launchpad.
Swaps are basically an exchange that enables you to trade one token for another, which includes NFTs.
Staking is storing your $SWAP tokens on the platform to improve token stability and receive rewards.
“Every transaction paid in SWAP rewards stakers with 80% of the transaction fee, 10% goes to the Trustswap Foundation and 10% is burned. Staking SWAP not only accrues direct rewards but also grows your 'SwapScore' to unlock free airdrops, guaranteed launchpad access (pending KYC), and access to our special Flashlaunch lotteries.”
Minting enables you to create your own token with no coding knowledge and no fees.
“SmartLock is a decentralized application that allows blockchain projects to lock their ERC20 coins and LP Liquidity tokens in a non-custodial, time-released smart contract vault.”
SmartSwaps enables off-market trades to occur safely. You can trade with someone you have never met and ensure that you don’t get scammed. Once you both fulfil your side of the deal the transaction will go through.
The launchpad is what really interests me, this isn’t the only one out there, but I thought I’d use Trustswap’s launchpad as an example. Launchpads are platforms where projects raise capital before going public and become available on normal exchanges. It’s similar to a SPAC where you’re getting in at a low price before the market determines the project’s value. There is so much potential for high-return investments and the thing is it’s almost guaranteed. I’m not an expert and this could change, but at the moment the hype around cryptocurrency causes most projects to pump hugely before they level out. We’re talking about a minimum pump of 100% and the biggest pump for a project was 10200% for Chain Games! Think of the money that can be made in a very short time.
To take part all you have to do is stake 4000 $SWAP tokens on the platform which would cost you about $16k. Other launchpads have different staking structures and the more you stake the more you’re guaranteed access. This makes it more accessible to investors with less capital but still leaves the opportunity to chance. For example, on Card Starter 100 CARDS (+-$4000) will give you a 10% chance of investing and guaranteed access calls for 1500 CARDS (+-$60000) staked.
These launchpads are very exciting and I’m constantly on the lookout for interesting opportunities.
VeChain is the last project I will cover. It has real-world applications that have encouraged many companies to team up with them and take advantage of their technology.
“VeChain is a blockchain platform designed to enhance supply chain management and business processes. Its goal is to streamline these processes and information flow for complex supply chains through the use of distributed ledger technology (DLT).”
Basically, it enables companies to keep track of their goods throughout the supply chain as the record is kept on the blockchain. This will help with many things, the prevention of counterfeit goods being one of them. For example, if you were buying a handbag from a stranger, you could scan the unique code to see where it came from and whether it was authentic. They have teamed up with some major brands and there is a lot of interest in the luxury goods sector.
These are just a few examples of the potential of this technology. I know I’ve been speaking about cryptocurrency a lot, but I really feel like this is the future and there is so much to learn. There are so many projects that I could have mentioned and each one is unique and tackles a different problem. We are seeing a new type of internet form and many businesses and powers feel threatened by it. Don’t believe everything you see and read and step back and ask why someone would talk badly about this technology. The potential is so promising and will lead to lots of drastic changes. That can be scary and threatens whole industries, but I believe the outcomes will be worth it. Obviously coming from someone with barely any skin in the game.