2024 is turning out to be a great year for the Web3 industry. Cryptocurrency prices are rallying like crazy, with Bitcoin hitting a new all-time high (ATH) at $73,400. Data shows that Asia is driving this mania, accounting for 70% of Bitcoin trading volumes at $791 billion of the $1.17 trillion in February. This behavior is the same as seen during the last bull run in 2021.
Despite the significant growth that the crypto market is experiencing, with Asia leading the charge as the current focal point, there are several other emerging Web3 trends dominating the region equally worth talking about.
Given the fact that digital payment gateways have flourished in Asia, the region offers an ideal ground for blockchain startups to launch their latest inventions and thrive. Not to mention, the region has a young, expanding population of digital natives who are known to embrace new technologies. Websea itself is a digital asset trading platform for the energetic and technologically advanced global youth.
So, with reports showing an expansion of Web3 projects as well as growth of new projects in Asia, let’s take a look at these Web3 trends:
Networking Events
The largest continent in the world, Asia, is particularly popular in the Web3 industry for hosting events that bring founders, builders, enthusiasts, and investors together to learn, discuss, and plan the sector’s future. Recent events such as ETH Taipei 2024, Websea’s Web3 2024 event in Hong Kong, Blockchain Week in South Korea, TOKEN2049 in Singapore, and the WOW Summit in Hong Kong have garnered significant attention, helping to solidify Asia’s position as a hub for Web3 discourse.
Investment Surge
Interestingly, while Web3 investment has been slowing down globally, it has accelerated in Asia. In particular, Singapore-based Foresight Ventures acquired the crypto news site The Block late last year and has also invested in regional crypto media companies such as CoinNess and BlockTempo, representing Asia’s role in contributing to the Web3 narrative globally.
SocialFi
SocialFi is another trend that is seeing an acceleration in the region, which is home to apps like WeChat, TikTok, Zepto, and many more. This trend stands to flourish in Asian countries thanks to their thriving creator economy, which can benefit from the new business models Web3 brings to the table.
In SocialFi, value does not go to a select few; rather, it is shared among creators, users, and investors. In addition to creating a more equitable ecosystem, SocialFi can also give creators control over their data and content and enable more meaningful interactions by aligning the interests of creators and fans.
AI + Web3
There is a special focus on the launch of funds looking to invest in AI and Web3 startups. This makes sense, given that blockchain technology can play a key tool in the facilitation of AI development. At Websea, they are also developing a unique AI system with features like risk management, fraud detection, predictive analytics, asset allocation, and strategy recommendations to help with crypto trading.
Gaming Boom
On the gaming front, the region was reportedly hosting 40% of developers and saw the launch of 50% of the games last year. From small to large gaming studios, Asia is seeing active participation, with Japan and Korea leading the way. The region, after all, offers a large pool of game developers and players.
For instance, a popular game, Pixels, has a good 20% of traffic coming from the Philippines and a whopping 48.6% from the world’s most diverse continent. Even the majority of gaming investment is from Asia firms such as Animoca Brands.
By adopting the play-to-earn model, Web3 aims to transform user engagement in both the gaming and entertainment sectors as well as create new avenues for revenue generation. Gamification is at the core of the Web3 world, which is leveraged at Websea to offer the younger generation an exciting opportunity to trade crypto, earn, and create value for the ecosystem.
While the investment in the global Web3 industry is still nowhere near the past boom period, they are seeing a resurgence. After declining steadily throughout 2021, the last quarter of 2023 saw the funding amounts starting to increase again, with Hong Kong, Singapore, and China being the most active, though the US still dominates.
However, it’s notable that even the US’s share of global crypto VC investment has halved this year as Asia records impressive growth. Some notable names in the sector include Hashed, Samsung Next, SoftBank, Gumi Cryptos Capital, Fenbushi Capital, and GBA Capital.
Concluding Thoughts
In Asia, Web3 is flourishing, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given that Japan was the first one to recognize crypto as a type of money, and up until the crypto ban, China dominated Bitcoin mining. Now, Web3 should see similar growth in the technologically advanced region with a booming digital native economy. The growth of Web3 in Asia could further be attributed to increased crypto adoption, strategic regulations, and the rising ambitions to become a Web3 hub.
So, as Web3 grows at a fast pace thanks to its focus on open source, transparency, trustlessness, and fostering collaboration toward a shared goal, this new iteration of the internet is poised to become a significant driver of the digital economy with Asia playing a major role in this growth.