CRYPTO custodial finance crypto ( exchanges , ramps , institutional crypto actors ), mainly decentralised , non-custodial tech crypto ( Layer-1 protocols AKA blockchains , DeFi , developer tools ), and then what you could broadly call the Metaverse ( NFTs , GameFi , decentalised social networks ).
Broadly speaking , we have seen finance crypto retreat in capital allocated and we have seen a number of notable collapses , like Signature Bank , BlockFi , Celsius , and of course , FTX . Tech crypto is continuing to build but with a greater emphasis on finding product-market fit in the short term and without the scale and certainty of the venture capital support we saw during the 2020-22 bull market .
The metaverse is still early , with exuberance for NFTs having declined dramatically , but still a lot of potential within the gaming , streaming , and cultural applications of blockchain technology . And across the board , over the last 9-12 months , there has been a broad decline in transaction volume and total value locked across all platforms .
This has been difficult for the industry , because many of the early-stage , small developer-led companies rely upon the venture investment streams to continue with their innovative projects . During the downturn , there ’ s also been a flight towards more stable , premium assets , such as Bitcoin , which has driven a period of experimentation on Bitcoin away from the main chain .
Despite the down cycle , the IOV Labs developers launching projects on Rootstock remain focused on building Everyday DeFi solutions for those in emerging markets who need it most . The reason Rootstock is built on top of Bitcoin is that we believe that while many assets will come and go , Bitcoin will remain . fintechmagazine . com 105