Not very long ago, any firm would need to go through rigorous operations to be able to operate in a country. Things have changed with globalisation and the advent of the blockchain era, in which startups are based out of anywhere in the world and raising money in millions and some, in billions. How different is it for cryptocurrency-based startups as opposed to others on the market? Here’s the reveal:
The Growth Can be Painstakingly Slow
A few years back, in 2015, Magister Advisors reported about getting to see five blockchain/bitcoin-based unicorns in 2016. It wasn’t until August 2017, when Coinbase was coined as the first-ever cryptocurrency unicorn startup. The firm had a $1.6 billion valuation at that time because of a $108 million funding round that was announced.
This gap of two years clearly depicts that the growth for blockchain-based startups is anything but rapid.
You Don’t Always Need a Product
If you take a look at unicorns like Airbnb, Uber, Lyft etc., you’ll find that most of them have a product to offer. But this is not the case with blockchain-based startups.
OmiseGo and Qtum are two more startups to touch the $1 billion mark. These firms went on to become the first ERC20 tokens, i.e. subtokens, which are built on the Ethereum network and then, sold to investors through an ICO. Astonishingly, they surpassed the unicorn milestone in a few months, and none of these companies had a product to boast of in the market. Instead, the investors went ahead and bought the idea of a product roadmap, which can be developed with the funds that are raised using the token scale.
On the one hand, OMG (OmiseGo) is going to establish a decentralised payment system that’s based on blockchain, while on the other hand, Qtum will make it easy for companies that want to build apps and services that are based on blockchain, mainly Ethereum and Bitcoin. These also include Smart Contracts.
There you have it. Great concepts and offerings but sans any product.
Increased Media Visibility
We already discussed how achieving the rank of a unicorn for most blockchain-based startups can be slow. However, this is becoming an advantage because it paves the way for media visibility. People are already curious to know any news coming from the cryptocurrency/blockchain space and will surely be excited about any new project on the horizon. This, in turn, guarantees media attention especially when people make a beeline to invest in them due to the speculations.
A case in point is that of Circle, which is valued at about $3 billion and, therefore, a part of the Blockchain Unicorn club’. It aims to launch a US dollar coin that could be regulated as well as backed by real government currency.
The launch is timed well because of Silicon Valley investors showing their affinity for similar products, with the funding round and the valuation drawing media attention.
Thinking Different Can be Your Savior
Basis is a one-year-old startup, which is figuring out how to build a price-stable cryptocurrency and will soon be treading the Unicorn path by having recently raised $133 million from its top investors.
This N.J.-based cryptocurrency based startup will make sure that the stable coin’s elastic supply will ostensibly expand and contract to keep its value at about a dollar. This comes as a relief to people who would want to get a token they can actually use instead of speculating.
Moreover, Basis can make the most of the massive crowdfunding market as with a stable crypto, people can look forward to streamlined trading while the entire working system still remains a mystery for the larger part.
Ergo, thinking differently can help you scale heights like never before.
People Want New, People Want Different
Let’s face it. People are not just looking at cryptocurrencies and becoming billionaires overnight by investing in them. They are also exploring the possibilities of how blockchain can help solve problems or bring about a new and different solution other than what already exists on the market.
Take the instance of NKN (New Kind of Network), which is an open source project aimed to rebuild the internet that can be truly open, decentralised, dynamic, safe, shared and owned by the community. The new generation of highly scalable, self-evolving blockchain network infrastructure is supported by LEEKICO “ a one-stop-service ICO platform. It tokenises network connectivity along with data transmission capacity by using a novel and useful Proof of Work.
With the support of LEEKICO in all the stages of the ICO, along with excellent service and marketing support, the project reached over 2000 participants, generated more than 9000 new sign-ups and got over 15000 visitors per second to the website. This makes it one of the hottest blockchain projects out there and has people’s attention.
It is important to note that the firm is going to participate in the upcoming Blockchain Connect Conference, which has the theme The Next Crypto Unicorn.
Calling it a Day
The cryptocurrency and Bitcoin bubble is far from being burst, and as the unicorns keep churning out irrespective of the pace, it’s important for everyone to be in the know and take the next step. It’s also essential for the billion dollar blockchain startups to beat their competition in their own game. There’s an enormous market for cryptocurrency and the underlying/related technologies. It’s what can help your startup grow and become successful in its own right. After all, this is the best time for transition for investors, startup owners and people alike, who want to make the most of it.
