From 2021 to 2024, the field of cryptocurrency has experienced tremendous development, with many hot topics emerging every year, leading the industry's direction.
1. 2021: The rise of public chains and the attention paid to tokens such as LUNA and SOL
In 2021, the most significant feature of the cryptocurrency field is the rise of major public chains. Ethereum continues to consolidate its position, and emerging public chains such as LUNA, SOL (Solana), and AVAX (Avalanche) have also attracted a large number of investors' attention. These public chains use different methods to expand throughput, reduce transaction costs, and attract outstanding developers to join, thereby competing for market share. In addition, the NFT (non-fungible token) market has also begun to emerge, providing a new platform for the trading of digital artworks and collectibles.
2. 2022: Expansion Wars and the Rise of the Cosmos Ecosystem
Entering 2022, the battle for expansion among public chains continued to heat up. The high fees and congestion issues of Ethereum prompted developers to look for other L1 (Layer 1) and L2 (Layer 2) solutions. Meanwhile, the Cosmos ecosystem gradually rose, with its interoperability and cross-chain bridge technology enabling communication and asset transfer between blockchains. In addition, the stablecoin market also showed explosive growth, with a total market value exceeding $150 billion, becoming a 'killer application' in the cryptocurrency field.
3. 2023: Artificial Intelligence, GameFi, and Meme Coins Become Hot Topics
By 2023, artificial intelligence (AI), GameFi (game finance), and Meme Coins became the most关注话题 in the cryptocurrency space. AI tokens like Akash Network (AKT) and Render (RNDR) saw massive gains, attracting the attention of many investors. GameFi surged with the rise of blockchain game development, with seven top video game companies entering this field. Furthermore, Meme Coins also experienced a long season, with meme coins like HarryPotterObamaSonic10Inu (BITCOIN) and Bonk (BONK) showing astonishing increases, contributing to the rise of new crypto millionaires.
4. 2024: Bitcoin Shines and the Mainstreaming of the Crypto Market
In 2024, the cryptocurrency field welcomed the shining moment of Bitcoin. Bitcoin's price broke the $100,000 mark, signaling the end of the stigmatization of the crypto market. At the same time, cryptocurrencies began to enter a path of mainstream elevation, with institutionalization, compliance, and politicization becoming the core narrative. The approval of Ethereum spot ETFs also brought new vitality to the market. Additionally, the approval of Hong Kong's virtual asset spot ETFs and the rise of concepts like stablecoins and RWA (real-world assets) demonstrated the infinite potential for future development in the cryptocurrency field.
With more and more L1 and L2 solutions continuously emerging, it is still too early to pick a specific asset or even a group of assets that will ultimately win this race. However, it is certain that the competition in this field will only intensify.
From 2021 to 2024, the cryptocurrency field experienced a journey from the rise of public chains, the expansion wars to the shining of Bitcoin. Each year has seen the emergence of numerous hot topics that lead the transformation and development of the industry. In the future, with continuous technological advancements and the increasing maturity of the market, the cryptocurrency space will continue to bring us more surprises and opportunities.
What do you think the topic of 2025 will be?
