Blockchain shows stable growth, but still lacks key elements.

From the birth of Bitcoin in 2008 to the ICO fundraising frenzy in 2017, the cryptocurrency industry has experienced fluctuating waves over the past decade. Despite the influx of substantial funds, most projects generally fall short of the rosy picture painted in their whitepapers, let alone achieve widespread adoption.

According to a study released by EY (Ernst & Young) in 2018, 86% of ICO projects listed on cryptocurrency exchanges in 2017 were below their initial offering price.

Similarly, a Deloitte study revealed that in 2016, over 26,000 blockchain projects were initiated on GitHub. Just one year later, a staggering 92% of these projects declared failure.

While these numbers illustrate the challenging road for blockchain, it is noteworthy that many forward-thinking institutions continue to actively invest in blockchain technology, attracting attention from businesses, governments, and investors, with funds continuously flowing in.

Cryptocurrency is no longer defined solely by speculation and investment, as the substantiality and practical use cases of projects are increasingly emphasized. Despite the growing interest in driving this technology forward, there are still several key elements lacking:

Building the Right Team for Blockchain Projects

Many blockchain solutions are engineered-centric, keeping blockchain at the forefront of innovation in startups. However, many projects lack traditional business, financial, and marketing acumen, making it challenging to expand into practical applications.

Most projects focus excessively on expanding distributed ledger technology academically and theoretically, while they should seek traditional business approaches to drive strategic direction and project execution in a pragmatic, efficient, and sustainable manner.

By collaborating with accelerators and seeking guidance from industry experts, blockchain projects can acquire the necessary resources in competitive industries. In short, the days of relying solely on flashy whitepapers are gone.

Focus on Consumers

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos once said, "Start with the customer and work backward." This principle should also apply to blockchain projects, starting from the perspective of customers and target users, rather than internal operations.

Most blockchain projects fail to explore how the technology can make a real impact and meet specific market needs. Additionally, blockchain startups must reduce their lofty technological aspirations and focus more on real-world use cases.

A report indicates that attention to practical use cases is crucial for blockchain to achieve mainstream adoption.

Attracting Institutional Investors

According to a report from venture capital firm Outlier Ventures, investment in blockchain and crypto projects surged from $900 million in 2017 to $2.8 billion in 2018, a 316% increase.

Therefore, by taking risk and institutional investors seriously, companies have the potential to leverage their business, resources, and deep industry insights to gain actual support in media relations, community development, and regulatory affairs.

Overall, if the past decade of blockchain has been built on high growth and visionary ideas, there is still an opportunity to create a sustainable next decade and develop solutions for specific needs and real-world problems in today's society.

Related Articles

• Decentralized exchange DeversiFI introduces anonymous KYC solution
• SOLA Coin x WANGPAY new mobile payment solution offers up to 8% cashback per transaction

Join now to get the most comprehensive financial technology information, blockchain insights, and industry examples!