Summary

2024 is here, and we are excited to take a look at what is waiting for us in crypto this year. Here are top-10 trends we anticipate in 2024 (read further for more):

1. Bitcoin hegemony: Bitcoin is expected to maintain dominance in the crypto market due to institutional interest and its individual narrative outperforming traditional assets.
2. Web3 infrastructure on the rise: The focus is shifting from decentralized finance to developing infrastructure for a Web3 future, with a spotlight on finding potential Web3 apps that bridge the gap between early adoption and mainstream use.
3. Evolution of Layer-2s: Layer-2 scaling solutions have accelerated the growth of the sector but have not significantly diverted activity away from Ethereum mainnet. The sector is moving towards modular architecture and the potential for lower transaction fees.
4. The transition from the USD to a multipolar world: The global monetary regime is shifting away from USD dominance, but the USD remains the world's reserve currency. Bitcoin and other digital stores of value are seen as playing a role in the emerging shift towards a multipolar world.
5. An acute issue of regulatory clarity: The lack of well-defined crypto regulations in the US is seen as threatening the country's position as a leader in financial services. Regulatory progress in other jurisdictions is crucial for the upcoming commercialization of tokenization.
6. Rise of GameFi: Web3 gaming is seeing a resurgence, with the potential to improve user acquisition and retention, although the success of Web3 games is still unproven.
7. Decentralized infrastructure paves the way for next-gen technology: The focus is on decentralizing real-world resources, specifically decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN) and decentralized compute (DeComp). DePIN are blockchain protocols that operate physical hardware infrastructure in an open, decentralized manner, covering data storage, wireless connectivity, computing, energy, and data collection.
8. Increase in TradFi-DeFi bridges: Stablecoins will play a crucial role in connecting traditional finance and decentralized finance, with non-USD stablecoins becoming more widely accepted.
9. More computationally intensive applications may move on-chain: Scalability improvements will enable computationally expensive applications, such as AI systems and knowledge graphs, to be economically feasible on-chain.
10. Consolidation of blockchain ecosystems and a “spoke-hub” model: Larger blockchain ecosystems will act as central hubs, with smaller appchains focusing on specific verticals to retain an edge.

Below we’ve accumulated the opinions of different industry players on what is coming in 2024.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by Coinbase:

• Bitcoin hegemony: In 2023, digital asset selection shifted towards higher-quality names, leading to a steady increase in bitcoin dominance above 50% for the first time since April 2021. This was largely due to the participation of established financial stalwarts in spot bitcoin ETFs in the US. Institutional flows are expected to remain firmly anchored on bitcoin through the first half of 2024, and pent-up demand from traditional investors will make it harder to supplant bitcoin hegemony. Bitcoin's idiosyncratic narrative has outperformed traditional assets through 2H23, and it may perform well even against a more challenging macroeconomic backdrop. Fiscal dominance in the US and other countries may curtail restrictive monetary policies, and the commercial real estate sector in the US may contribute to renewed pressure on regional banks.
• Web3 infrastructure on the rise: The crypto winter of 2018-19 saw the rise of decentralized finance and alternative layer-1 networks, initially built to meet the demand for on-chain blockspace. However, activity stagnated in late 2021, leading developers to focus on building infrastructure for a Web3 future, such as scaling solutions, security services, and hardware acceleration. As more decentralized applications emerge, the trading regime for crypto will transition alongside these endeavors. Market players are now focusing on finding potential Web3 apps to bridge the gap between early adoption and mainstream use. The challenge lies in identifying the winners and monetizing the right network effects.
• The layer-1 equilibrium: The moderation in on-chain activity over the past two years has reduced demand for general purpose alternative layer-1s, with Ethereum dominating smart contract platforms. As market players focus on applications, alt L1s are repurposing their networks to align with the shifting narrative. Sector-specific platforms are being propagated, such as gaming or NFTs, DeFi, and institutional participants. Modular blockchains are gaining traction, with many L1s fulfilling core components like data availability, consensus, settlement, and execution. The debate between modular and integrated chains may not be resolved soon, but the trend towards differentiated chains will continue through 2024.
• The evolution of layer-2s: Layer-2 scaling solutions like OP Stack, Polygon CDK, and Arbitrum Orbit have accelerated the growth of layer-2 scaling solutions. However, these solutions have not significantly diverted activity away from Ethereum mainnet, instead cannibalizing alt L1 activity. The share of ETH locked on rollup-linked bridges has grown from 25% to 85% by the end of November 2023. Despite this, transaction counts on Ethereum remain stable. The modularity thesis is manifesting in the L2 sector, with Eclipse challenging existing conventions with its modular architecture. With the Cancun (Dencun) Fork also on the horizon in 1Q24, we may also see transaction fees coming down for L2s settling to Ethereum.
• The transition from the USD to a multipolar world: De-dollarization is a topic of discussion in 2024, but the USD is not yet under threat of losing its global supremacy. The global monetary regime is slowly shifting away from USD dominance due to growing macroeconomic imbalances in the US. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects the cost of servicing America's debt burden to rise to $1T, or 3.1% of GDP, by 2028 and the federal deficit to expand from an average 3.5% of GDP to 6.1% in the next decade. Despite this, the USD remains the world's reserve currency, with its share of international transactions hovering around 85-90% for the last four decades. The weaponization of global finance, accelerated by increased US sanctions on Russia, has accelerated interest in developing new cross-border payment solutions. Crypto advocates argue that bitcoin and other digital stores of value play an important role in this emerging shift from a unipolar to multipolar world.
• An acute issue of regulatory clarity: A survey by Coinbase shows that 59% of participants expect their firms' allocations to the digital asset class to increase over the next three years, with a third boosting their allocations over the past 12 months. However, uncertainty in the US is contributing to missed opportunities and enforcement-centric market constraints, with 76% of respondents agreeing that the lack of well-defined crypto regulations threatens the country's position as a leader in financial services. The perception of US banking supervisors' attitude towards the digital asset ecosystem is unfavorable, making it difficult for crypto companies to establish banking relationships.
• Tokenization, redux: Tokenization is a crucial use case for traditional financial institutions, automating workflows and eliminating intermediaries in asset issuance, trading, and record keeping. It has a strong product-market fit for distributed ledger technology (DLT) and is more relevant in the current high yield environment. In 2023, tokenized US Treasury exposure on public permissionless networks increased 6x to over $786M. In 2024, tokenization may expand to other market instruments like equities, private market funds, insurance, and carbon credits. However, regulatory ambiguity and complexities in managing different jurisdictions pose significant challenges. Most institutions rely on private blockchains due to risks associated with public networks. Regulatory progress in jurisdictions like Singapore, the EU, and the UK is crucial for tokenization's commercialization. Full implementation will take multiple years due to regulatory alignment, on-chain identity solutions, and critical infrastructure within major institutions.
• Rise of GameFi: Web3 gaming has seen a resurgence in 2H23, focusing on mainstream gamers outside of crypto first communities. The gaming industry currently has a market of around US$250B, projected to grow to $390B over the next five years. However, users have skepticism about Web3 "play-to-earn" models, leading to greater experimentation from developers. Some developers are experimenting with Web3 primitives like non-fungible tokens (NFTs), but surveys show that most gamers dislike NFTs. The gaming industry believes that Web3 architecture can improve user acquisition and retention, but this is still an unproven thesis. With many projects reaching 2-3 years in development, the release of Web3 games in 2024 may provide the necessary data to better assess this sector.
• Decentralized infrastructure paves the way for next-gen technology: In 2024, the focus will be on decentralizing real-world resources, specifically decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN) and decentralized compute (DeComp). DePIN projects incentivize participants to build physical infrastructure outside centralized control, such as Akash, Helium, Hivemapper, and Render. DeComp, an extension of DePIN, relies on a distributed network of computers for specific tasks. The industry is exploring decentralized solutions to computationally expensive AI training. DePIN represents a strong real-world use case for blockchain technology but faces hurdles like high initial outlays, technical complexity, quality control, and economies of scale. Market players will need to take a long-term view to invest in the sector.
• Validator middleware and customizability: Validator middleware solutions, such as restaking and distributed validator technology (DVT), are allowing validators to customize key parameters to better accommodate changing economic conditions and network demands. EigenLayer's restaking could secure data availability layers, oracles, sequencers, and consensus networks on Ethereum, potentially providing a new income stream. EigenLayer officially launched phase 1 on Ethereum mainnet in June 2023 and will begin registering operators to actively validated services (AVS) in 2024, after which restakers will be able to delegate their staked positions to those operators. DVT for proof-of-stake networks offers stakers more design choices, reducing single points of failure and enhancing security. Solo stakers can run validators and earn rewards without putting up collateral, promoting greater decentralization and enabling them to distribute geographically.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by Pantera:

• The resurgence of Bitcoin and “DeFi Summer 2.0”: Bitcoin's dominance in the crypto market has increased from 38% in January to 52% in December 2023, making it a top ecosystem to watch in 2024. Three major catalysts for this renaissance include the fourth Bitcoin halving due in April, the expected approval of several bitcoin spot ETFs from institutional investors, and a rise in programmability features. Infrastructure-wise, Bitcoin L2s and scalability layers are expected to support smart contracts, with top contenders including Rust, Solidity, or Clarity. A possible "DeFi summer 2.0" on Bitcoin is also expected, with Wrapped BTC (WBTC) having a market cap of around $6 billion. Bitcoin NFTs may also see increased popularity in 2024.
• Tokenized social experiences for new consumer use cases: Web3 is transitioning from finance to social, with friend.tech's tokenized social experiences on Base L2 gaining popularity. This led to copycat projects like post.tech on Arbitrum. In the coming year, tokenization will play a key role in reinventing the social experience, with fungible tokens being novel points and loyalty systems and non-fungible tokens serving as profiles and social resources. Web3-native applications like Lens and Farcaster integrate DeFi with social networks, while projects like Blackbird popularize tokenized points systems for loyalty programs.
• An increase in TradFi-DeFi “bridges”: In 2023, crypto industry has seen numerous legal actions, including XRP rulings and Grayscale ETF litigation. Institutional interest in Bitcoin and Ethereum has increased, leading to potential ETF approvals. In 2024, institutional adoption is expected to rise, seeking ETFs, tokenized real-world assets, and TradFi financial products. Stablecoins will play a crucial role in connecting TradFi and DeFi worlds, with non-USD stablecoins like EURC and British Pounds becoming more widely accepted. This could lead to an on-chain fiat foreign exchange market.
• The сross-pollination of modular blockchains and Zero Knowledge proofs: Modular blockchains and Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) have matured, with companies focusing on specific verticals like co-processors, privacy layers, proof marketplaces, and zkDevOps. In the upcoming year, ZKPs will emerge as an interface between different components of the modular blockchain stack, allowing for smart contract composability and increased flexibility for developers building DApps. ZKPs may also see increased use cases for preserving identity and privacy.
• More computationally intensive applications may move on-chain: Decentralized applications' scalability problem has been significantly improved, with Ethereum L2s and Solana offering lower gas fees. As this trend continues, computationally expensive applications, such as AI systems, DePIN, knowledge graphs, and games, may become more economically feasible on-chain. This could radically reshape the on-chain data economy, improve user and developer experience, and free them from onerous gas fees and compute power constraints. Examples include Hivemapper's decentralized Google Maps, Bittensor's machine learning platform, Modulus Labs' ZKML, and The Graph's knowledge graphs.
• Consolidation of blockchain ecosystems and a “spoke-hub” model: Infrastructure projects have seen a proliferation of Layer 1 (L1) and Layer 2 (L2) blockchains, with larger incumbents like Arbitrum, Optimism, and Solana benefiting from liquidity. Smaller ecosystems, like appchains or sector-chains, are focusing on specific verticals to retain an edge. Leading general-purpose public blockchains have released appchain toolkits, allowing appchains to tap into liquidity on these networks. This "hub and spoke" model is becoming more prevalent, with a few general-purpose public blockchains acting as central hubs and numerous "spokes" of specific app chains. In 2024, it may be worth paying attention to major rollup-as-a-service vendors such as Caldera, Conduit, and Eclipse that take advantage of this “hub-and-spoke” move.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by Binance:

• Bitcoin halving: Bitcoin miners earn income through block rewards and transaction fees, with block rewards paid for each newly mined block and halved every 210,000 blocks. This scarcity increases BTC's price over time, reinforcing its status as "digital gold" or a safe-haven asset. The current reward is 6.25 BTC per block, with the next halving expected in April 2024.
• Stablecoin supply: Stablecoin supply, indicating potential buying pressure, showed a positive quarterly net change in Q4 2023 for the first time since Q1 2022. The metric's future direction will be monitored to determine if this is temporary or sustained.
• NFT volumes: In 2023, non-fungible token (NFT) trading volumes experienced a significant downturn, dropping to new yearly lows from February to September. However, in October, a significant uptick was seen in November, with Bitcoin NFTs being the most popular type, with over $375,000,000 in trading volume. This surge in trading volumes suggests positive market sentiment and a revival of the NFT scene, with it crucial to monitor these trends in 2024.
• Protocol fees: The fees generated by top crypto projects have steadily increased throughout 2023, with fees for the top 20 projects being over 88% higher than in January. Ethereum is the largest fee generator, with DeFi protocols and NFTs also contributing significantly. Lido and Uniswap are the second-largest fee generators, followed by DeFi projects and Layer 1s. OpenSea leads in fee revenues, nearly double those of Manifold and Blur. Fee generation is an indicator of a sustainable business model, and it's crucial to monitor which protocols and subsectors show the best fee growth.
• Layer 1s: Ethereum remains the dominant smart contract L1 in 2023, but other alternatives have shown promise. Solana, with a 56% increase in market capitalization, has been a notable performer. Toncoin has made significant progress with The Open Network's partnership with Telegram in September. Ethereum's Shanghai Upgrade in April enabled staked ETH withdrawals, fostering DeFi markets in liquid staking and LSDFi. BNB Chain launched opBNB, an optimistic L2 based on the OP Stack, and BNB Greenfield, a next-generation data storage platform.
• SocialFi: Blockchain applications have the potential to revolutionize social interactions, leading to the emergence of SocialFi, or "social finance." In 2023, friend.tech, a product in beta, generated over $25,000,000 in protocol fees. This growth highlights the potential of Web3 social apps, alongside notable projects like Farcaster, Lens Protocol, and Binance Square. The success of SocialFi in 2024 will shape the future of social interactions on Web3 for years to come.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by a16zcrypto:

• Entering a new era of decentralization: Decentralization is crucial for democratizing systems by enabling neutral internet infrastructure, promoting competition and ecosystem diversity, and allowing users more choice and ownership. However, achieving decentralization at scale is challenging due to the efficiency and stability of centralized systems. Web3 governance models often use simplified models, which are not designed for decentralized governance. As Web3 evolves, best practices for decentralization, including models accommodating richer features and Machiavellian principles, are expected to increase coordination, operational functionality, and innovations.
• Resetting the UX of the future: Cryptocurrency's user experience has not significantly changed since 2016, with complex tasks like self-custodying secret keys and connecting wallets with decentralized applications. However, developers are now testing and deploying new tools to improve the frontend UX for crypto. These include passkeys, smart accounts, embedded wallets, multi-party computation (MPC), and advanced remote procedure call (RPC) endpoints. These innovations aim to make Web3 more mainstream and improve the UX more secure than in Web2. These tools not only make Web3 more mainstream but also enhance user experience.
• The rise of the modular tech stack: Network effects dominate the world of networks, with only two types of modularity: extending and strengthening them and fragmenting and weakening them. Open-source, modular architectures offer deep integration and optimization, leading to greater performance. However, the biggest advantage of these architectures is their ability to unlock permissionless innovation, allow specialized participation, and incentivize competition, which is crucial in today's world.
• AI + blockchains come together: Decentralized blockchains serve as a counterbalance to centralized AI, allowing for global, permissionless markets where anyone can contribute compute or datasets. This reduces the cost of AI and makes it more accessible. However, AI's revolution in information production also creates abundant AI-generated content, including deep fakes. Cryptotechnology can help track the origin of online content and decentralize generative AI. Web3 is a laboratory for figuring out ways to govern AI democratically, ensuring no one actor has the power to decide for all others. Decentralized, open-source crypto networks will democratize AI innovation, making it safer for consumers.
• Play-to-earn becomes play-and-earn:user-friendly, Play-to-earn (P2E) games are transforming gaming by allowing players to earn real-world money based on their time and effort. This shift is part of the rise of the creator economy and the changing relationship between people and platforms. Web3 allows for a counter-norm where all game proceeds go to gaming companies, allowing users to be compensated for their time spent on platforms. However, games should be fun and allow players to capture more of their value. As P2E evolves, the dynamics of managing gaming economies will continue to shift, but this trend will become part of games.
• Guaranties for games made by AI: AI agents in Web3 games must be guaranteed to be based on certain models and executed without corruption to maintain game integrity. When AI becomes the game maker, it is crucial to ensure the game maker is credibly neutral and built with guarantees. Crypto offers this guarantee, including the ability to understand, diagnose, and penalize AI issues. AI alignment is an incentive design problem, similar to dealing with any human agent, and is what crypto aims to address.
• Formal verification becomes less formal: Formal methods are less common in software development due to their complexity and potential costs. However, smart contract developers face unique challenges, as their systems handle billions of dollars and bugs can have devastating consequences. A new wave of tools has emerged that offer better developer experience than traditional formal systems. These tools leverage the architectural simplicity of smart contracts, with atomic and deterministic execution, no concurrency or exceptions, small memory footprint, and little looping. Recent breakthroughs in SMT solver performance are improving the performance of these tools. As adoption increases, the next wave of smart contract protocols will be more robust and less prone to costly hacks.
• NFTs become ubiquitous brand assets: Brands are increasingly introducing digital assets like NFTs to mainstream consumers, such as Starbucks' loyalty program and Nike's digital collectible NFTs. These NFTs can represent customer identity, bridge physical goods with digital representations, and co-create new products with dedicated enthusiasts. In 2018, there was a growing trend towards inexpensive NFTs for large-scale collection as consumer goods, often managed through custodial wallets or "Layer 2" blockchains with low transaction costs. As 2024 approaches, NFTs are expected to become ubiquitous as digital brand assets for various companies and communities.
• SNARKs go mainstream: Historically, technologists have used three strategies for verifying computational workloads: re-executing the compute on a trusted machine, executing compute on a specialized machine, or executing compute on credibly neutral infrastructure. However, SNARKs (Succinct Non-interactive ARguments of Knowledge) are becoming more usable. These strategies allow for the computation of a "cryptographic receipt" of a compute workload by an untrusted "prover" that is impossible to forge. This makes SNARKs viable in situations where the initial compute provider can bear a 10^6 overhead and clients cannot re-execute or store initial data. SNARKs have numerous use cases, including edge devices in the Internet of Things, media editing software, remixed memes, LLM inferences, self-verifying IRS forms, and unforgeable bank audits.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by The Economic Times:

• Central Bank Digital Currencies: In 2024, countries are expected to significantly develop and implement their own Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), a paradigm shift in government acceptance of digital assets, enhancing financial transactions and monetary policy effectiveness.
• Interoperability and cross-chain solutions: In 2024, blockchain interoperability will be a key focus, facilitating seamless communication and asset transfer between different blockchain networks, fostering collaboration and innovation in the decentralized landscape.
• Enhanced security measures: The crypto industry is expected to prioritize security measures in 2024, investing in robust infrastructure and advanced encryption techniques to maintain trust and confidence among users.
• Decentralized Finance (DeFi) maturation: DeFi's innovation is expected to mature in 2024, addressing user experience, security, scalability, and interoperability concerns. Improved infrastructure and interoperability will create a robust, user-friendly, decentralized financial landscape.
• NFTs beyond art: In 2023, NFTs gained popularity in digital art and collectibles, but their use is expected to expand into real estate, gaming, and intellectual property in 2024, revolutionizing ownership and authenticity verification.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by Xapo Bank:

• Crypto wave: The Bitcoin halving in April 2024 could trigger a surge in market activity, potentially leading to a new all-time high by 2025, as the reduced block rewards and increased demand fuel scarcity-induced price surges. A spot Bitcoin ETF has been approved, providing investors with a more accurate tracking of Bitcoin's true price. This is a significant shift from digital wallets and derivatives, eliminating the need for digital wallets or derivative Bitcoin ETFs. Standard Chartered Bank’s bitcoin prediction, as reported in CoinDesk, is that the cryptocurrency will reach USD 100,000 by the end of 2024.
• Upswing in crypto payments: In 2024, the acceptance of crypto payments is expected to rise across various sectors, including consumer goods and services, due to advancements in technology, user-friendly payment systems, and increased confidence in blockchain security measures, which will facilitate the integration of cryptocurrencies into daily transactions.
• Metaverse boom: Dubai is leading the charge in the metaverse, aiming to triple the number of blockchain and metaverse companies by 2030. The ambitious plan aims to create over 40,000 virtual jobs, drawing in over 1,000 companies specializing in blockchain and the metaverse. The involvement of tech giants like Microsoft, Apple, and Amazon further solidifies the transformative era in this space.
• Regulatory clarity in the crypto sphere: 2024 is anticipated to bring increased regulatory clarity in crypto markets, boosting investor confidence. Coinbase plans to return to court to force the Securities and Exchange Commission to create rules allowing it to continue its business. In 2023 the regulator denied the request and filed a suit against the company for unauthorized securities activities. Coinbase's shares fell 4% in afternoon trading to $147.82, reflecting the improving fortunes of the cryptocurrency market after a disastrous 2022. SEC Chair Gary Gensler reiterated the agency's existing positions on creating specific rules for cryptocurrency trading. The US may follow Europe's implementation of the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, prioritizing user and investor protection in distributed ledger technology and virtual asset usage.
• Progress in asset tokenisation: Polygon Labs' Colin Butler predicts a rise in tokenisation of real-world assets in 2024. This technology transforms asset rights into digital tokens on blockchain, with potential for trillions of dollars. Private equity funds and finance giants could drive tokenised fund development, leading to a variety of next-generation tokenised assets. 2024 is expected to see significant events like Bitcoin halving, crypto payments, and metaverse growth.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by 101 blockchains:

• Metaverse development: The upcoming crypto bull run in 2024 predicts significant growth in the metaverse market, potentially 10 times larger than the entire crypto market. This growth is attributed to large-scale initiatives like Dubai's metaverse strategy, the launch of metaverse platforms by major companies like Apple, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Amazon, and the potential for state and public-private interaction between these platforms. However, only a few will survive the competition.
• GameFi: The crypto bull market in 2024 is predicted to focus on GameFi, a metaverse technology industry. While some believe GameFi projects have no value in the market, new projects are emerging. Old GameFi projects focused on attracting users with profits and Ponzi schemes, often lacking immersive gameplay experiences. The next crypto bull run predicts that GameFi projects will shift from this conventional approach, with major video game developers working on these projects. However, the growth of GameFi in the market depends on improvements such as detailed tokenomics and immersive graphics.
• NFTs: The upcoming crypto bull run is predicted to see the value of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) rise due to their resilience amidst the crypto bear market. NFTs have not seen significant trading volume on secondary markets, and as the market continues to bullish, new improvements are expected. Key predictions include the addition of utility for NFTs, long-term roadmaps, and growing adoption in retail and music industries. Additionally, new NFT token standards, large projects, and the rise of the NFT loan market are expected to drive NFT growth.
• Real World Asset tokenization: The upcoming crypto bull market in 2024 is predicted to encourage the tokenization of real-world assets, a trend that many companies are experimenting with. However, big companies are not fully prepared for this shift, working on tokenization of subsidiaries and testing functionality on smaller exchanges. The growth of existing projects like Maple Finance and Centrifuge and market maturity could push demand for real-world asset tokenization in the crypto bull run.
• Artificial Intelligence creeps into Web3: The upcoming crypto bull run predicts significant growth in AI-based projects in the Web3 space, with new AI-based projects expected to attract more investments. However, it's crucial to identify AI-based crypto and Web3 projects that offer something relevant to users, as the rise of AI-based projects in the blockchain and Web3 market is expected to be a promising trend.
• Decentralized Autonomous Organizations: Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) are expected to be a significant trend in the crypto bull market in 2024 and 2025. These decentralized project or organizational management mechanisms offer convenience and fine-tuned management mechanisms. As users seek new governance models, DAOs could play a crucial role in the crypto industry, potentially gaining massive growth by the end of the next bull run.
• Decentralized Finance: Decentralized finance (DeFi) is expected to dominate the crypto bull market in 2024, with assets locked in DeFi solutions nearly equal to deposits in large US banks. As liquidity grows, Total Value Locked (TVL) will also grow. The crypto bull run will see the emergence of new DeFi solutions with unique models, such as lending protocols and multichain services, and the growth of integrated decentralized protocols for real-world asset interaction.
• Mainstream adoption of crypto payments: The upcoming crypto bull run is expected to drive the widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies, particularly in hotels and supermarkets. This trend could also extend to airline tickets and general goods, as cryptocurrencies could serve as a payment method. The growth of cryptocurrencies in the bull run could serve as a catalyst for this trend.

Trends in crypto in 2024 by TheStreet Crypto:

• Connecting the data: In 2024, blockchain technology will combine with distributed ledger technology for easy data transfer between different blockchains or sources. CEO and co-founder of Flare, Hugo Philion, believes that machine learning and DeFi applications require decentralized, low-latency access to off-chain data. Current oracle systems are not designed for these sophisticated use cases. Emerging applications require a highly scalable, low-cost, decentralized, and low-latency solution. Platforms with native, decentralized data acquisition architecture will attract new projects.
• TradFi and DeFi: The fintech industry is rapidly evolving, with 3.6 billion people worldwide expected to adopt digital banking by 2024. This convergence of decentralized finance (DeFi) and traditional finance (TradFi) is crucial for addressing global economic issues. DeFi must integrate regulatory practices from TradFi, while TradFi can use blockchain technology and green funding to demonstrate the value of a long-term relationship between these two financial worlds.
• Sustainability, proving green credentials: Regenerative finance (ReFi) is a blockchain trend that has gained momentum in recent years, with projects like Energy Web, Celo, and Regen Network showcasing the real-world utility of cryptocurrencies for funding sustainable infrastructure. With new EU regulations like the "Corporate Social Responsibility" directive, companies must prove their green credentials. Blockchain technology and platforms like Demia and Biotoken are actively constructing a sustainable future, with Mariana de la Roche Wills stating that blockchain transcends traditional auditing limits with its transparency and traceability.
• AI Agents infiltrate crypto trading: Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the crypto market, enhancing user engagement and transforming digital asset perception. Projects like Ocean Protocol and Cosmos are exploring AI's efficiencies, while Fetch.ai and The Graph are leading the way by integrating AI and crypto to unlock new use cases. Machine learning models like ChatGPT require significant data and have ethical questions that require consensus. Blockchains like Flare, designed to be open, decentralized, and driven by diverse communities, offer a counterbalance to centralized forces of traditional machine learning. These projects are paving the way for innovation in diverse sectors.
• Game-Within-Game economies: Online content creators are not just influencers, but players are using technology to create new revenue streams and virtual worlds. In 2023, players expanded to Web3 through social applications like Sweatcoin and NFL Rivals. Blockchain-based games are expected to dominate the crypto landscape in 2024, according to On Yavin, founder and managing partner at Cointelligence Fund and co-founder and CBO at Syndika.

Finishing point

In conclusion, the crypto industry is poised for a bright future in 2024, but not without facing tough moments. The increasing adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology is expected to continue, leading to various opportunities for growth and innovation.

However, it is important to acknowledge that there will be challenges along the way. Regulatory hurdles and government interventions may create uncertainties and impact market volatility. This could result in tough moments for crypto investors and businesses, as they navigate through changing regulations and adapt to new compliance requirements.

Despite these obstacles, the crypto industry's potential for disrupting traditional financial systems and revolutionizing various sectors, such as finance and supply chain management remains strong. Technological advancements, such as the development of scalable and sustainable solutions, may mitigate some of the challenges faced by cryptocurrencies.

The involvement of established financial institutions and institutional investors in the crypto market is likely to increase, providing further credibility and stability to the industry. The integration of cryptocurrencies into mainstream financial systems and the emergence of digital currencies issued by central banks could also contribute to a brighter future for crypto.

Overall, while there will undoubtedly be tough moments in the crypto industry, the advancements, growing adoption, and potential for innovation indicate a promising and prosperous future for cryptocurrencies in 2024.