Evolution of cryptocurrencies, what will come after bitcoin?

Internet history shows that pioneers in popularizing a technology are often replaced by those who offer an improved version of the original development

In the history of the Internet, where the first generation of a product or service is often displaced by more reliable or powerful alternatives , cryptocurrencies could follow suit. Facebook conquered a market that MySpace had already "opened" and Google did the same in the field of search engines. The question that remains open is whether bitcoin will have a cryptoactive to replace it.

In the 90's, when smartphones didn't exist yet, there were already search engines like Webcrawler scanning sites and creating lists of results. Altavista was then the king of the scene, and a resounding success from day one. At its launch in 1995 it received 300,000 visits and by 1997 it already had 80 million users.

In 1998, at the height of its popularity, two unknown people who had just created Google contacted the executives of AltaVista to sell them their “pagerank” for $1 million : an algorithm that established the relevance of pages to improve the quality of the results. search results. In a decision that cost them their stay in business, AltaVista executives decided to pass on the offer. Yahoo acquired AltaVista in 2003 and deactivated it in 2013, the same time that Google turned 15 and achieved net income of $12 billion a year.

before and after facebook

Facebook is another iconic case of how a good idea can completely wipe out its predecessors. Friendster, for example, reached 90 million users and MySpace was the most visited page in the world in 2008. But that year Facebook opened its registry and anyone could open their profile without having to paste HTML codes. The inability to evolve put MySpace out of business, while Facebook has an estimated net worth of $320 billion in 2023. Could new cryptocurrencies repeat this story with bitcoin?

Like MySpace or Altavista, many tokens and exchanges have succumbed to their own limitations during the crypto crash. As a result, cryptocurrency markets are moving on a “flight to quality,” Mathew McDermott, global head of digital assets at Goldman Sachs, told CNBC . With the fall in crypto values ​​in 2022, the trend is not to stop investing in them or predict their end , but to bet on a second generation that addresses the challenges that have arisen.

Along these lines, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned of the need to protect investments: "Stricter financial regulation and supervision, and the development of global standards, can help address many concerns about crypto assets ." The idea of ​​this body is that governments "quickly manage the risks of cryptocurrencies without stifling innovation." It is there when second-generation cryptocurrencies, which are backed by assets, emerge as the perfect alternative to bitcoin's volatility.

Next generation cryptocurrencies

Even among the managers of companies that work with crypto, regulations are welcome. “ For us, this is really a great moment ,” Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of crypto payments company Circle, told the New York Times . "We're bringing real value, and the people who focused on building gigantic speculative trading casinos aren't so happy."

New crypto assets like Unicoin are backed by assets, which in this case are the shares of companies with unicorn potential. They are transparent, because they allow their creators and investors to know, and the fact that they are backed reduces the risk of volatility from which other cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin have suffered so much.

In addition, accredited investment allows innovation to be encouraged and generates more confidence in governments and the most conservative investors, who still do not understand the possible uses of cryptocurrencies. For their part, crypto enthusiasts see the possibility of an expanding market in the real world, with the benefits of decentralization and financial freedom that bitcoin started. The question is what will come next?

Disclaimer: The opinion expressed here is not investment advice – it is provided for informational purposes only. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of TheCryptoArea. Every investment and all trading involves risk, so you should always perform your own research prior to making decisions. We do not recommend investing money you cannot afford to lose.