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Web 3 Gaming – The Metaverse – Gamers

WEB 3 + GAMING = 🚀

No doubt that the Internet has become an indispensable part of our modern life. Indeed, it would be impossible to imagine our lives without it, especially in light of the Corona global epidemic that shut down and brought the whole world to a halt, which drove most of us to turn on the Internet to scramble some continuance in our lives. 

There’s a buzzword that tech enthusiasts have recently been obsessed with, sprinkled throughout conversations across social media, seminars, exhibitions, and almost everywhere. One may even be considered ‘out of touch’ if you’ve not at least heard of this word. So what is the word? It is Web 3.0.

Web 3.0: You’ve probably heard of it, but what exactly is it?

Web 1.0 had its time, served its purpose but has faded away and was replaced by our, now common, understanding of the web; Web 2.0. But the way things are currently developing, the world is gradually adopting its predecessor; Web 3.0, which is looming on the horizon well in-sight right now.

So what is web 3.0? Web 3.0 is a new version of the Internet. A catch-all word for various concepts aimed at cutting out and disintermediating the large middlemen on the Internet. Web 3.0 then, hands over the financial power to the common man or woman with just an Internet connection at home or on a mobile device. How exactly does this happen? Just read on and the light across this bridge will get brighter.

Web 3.0 is decentralized, based on the blockchain and run by a user group rather than by a corporation. It is the same technology that powers Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies (also known as Altcoins).

Unlike in the Web 2.0 version of the Internet, where data is typically stored in centralized storage facilities that are susceptible to hacking and theft, Web 3.0 will store and connect data decentralized on blockchains, free from cyber theft.

Web 3.0 can give significantly more value to users, extending far beyond the social media, streaming, and online retail applications that make up the bulk of Web 2.0 applications. 

Decentralization and permissionless systems (transparent economics and transactions) are key characteristics and core features of Web 3.0, which will allow users to have more control over their data. The technological world is in a perpetual state of transformation. To others, just like Web 3.0, the Metaverse represents the next step in the evolution of how we interact, work, and play on the Internet. 

Blockchain technologies are now making some serious inroads into the internet world and likewise gaining some very serious traction. This heralds the arrival of Web 3.0, which will provide users with a new virtual world— the Metaverse.

The word “Metaverse” has been circulating in the video game market as more and more platforms adopt Virtual Reality environments that allow many users to participate simultaneously. In some respects, this is the next step in the evolution of how we engage across platforms. 

The Metaverse is a large online realm where people can communicate through digital avatars. It is a 3D world that combines virtual and physical realms using PCs, smartphones, Virtual/Augmented Reality glasses and headsets. The Metaverse aims to create a digital area for us to live, interact, and work that transcends our physical world’s space and time. 

Web 3.0 is the ‘engine’ that uses the blockchain’s advances. At the same time, Metaverse is a new dimension that includes: game, film, concert, entertainment, social platforms, education and simulation-based training techniques that employ Web 3.0 advances to achieve their goals. Is the Web 3.0 light getting a little brighter on this bridge between gaming, and Metaverse? 

With Metaverse, two or more players of a game will not need to sit all day and stare at screens with our control pads developing carpel tunnel syndrome or developing an extra layer across our already non-existent abs. No. Rather with a headset, we see ourselves in a virtual world, and we have fun, play games and at the same time, enjoy a new type of game by incorporating at least one or a combination of our natural senses. What is the new type of game? Drum roll..…Play-To-Earn!

Enter the Play To Earn (P2E) revolution. A unique common similarity between web 3.0 and Metaverse is that they concentrate on next- generation internet technology by transforming how people upload, share material online, and interact.

The use of non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, is a major component of Web 3.0 and is used to keep track of your things in games and other Metaverses. 

Because the Metaverse is all about connecting people through digital space, people can freely trade their digital products and items with others by using NFTs. It allows people to visit a Metaverse without leaving their homes, which is ideal for those unable to travel due to age, health issues or a number of other factors. 

Here is the revolution….here is the something…..Here is what Web 3.0 has for us all relating to gaming and Metaverse…

Gaming has always been a one-sided interrelation. The game companies alone stand to benefit financially, while gamers are left to have fun and hopefully just keep spending (albeit a previously unspoken mutual agreement by default) exchanging money for gaming entertainment. Now to be clear, this is a fair exchange should you simply wish to pay your money and take your game. 

Play Station games, from PS 1 to 5; you pay for the game, play the game, complete several matches, tournaments, and leagues, but don’t expect to get compensation for your efforts other than perhaps a little recognition in a league. It is what it is….(or rather it was what it was). We knew no different so that model was unchallenged but that’s so 2020! 

Games companies make billions of dollars yearly. They have produced some great and entertaining products for perhaps fair money. But what if we want to enhance on that old model so that players can also benefit financially? Well, the good news is that Web 3.0 is here to compensate us with what it is referred to as the ‘Play To Earn mechanism’. 

What does that mean? Games launched on Web 3.0/played in the Metaverse realm allow players to be compensated by earning the tokens within the games.

Web 3.0 has cut out the middlemen and handed over the financial power to anyone with an internet connection.

This means, with just access to the internet anyone can play games on the web and be rewarded. Financial Freedom….Check! Amazing….Check! Hyper amazing?…. Oh go on then!

The gaming sector has grown tremendously with the launch of Web 3.0 and many of todays Metaverses are driven by blockchain technology. Users would need Bitcoin or non-fungible tokens to transact in these virtual worlds (NFTs). Many of today’s Web 3 games feature their Metaverses, complete with native cryptocurrencies that can be used for transactions as well as receiving in-game assets and incentives.

The P2E gaming model powered by Web 3.0 embraces the concept of an open, decentralized and reward based economy; rewarding every user who brings value to the gaming environment by playing and their investing time – all thanks to the new revolutionary Web 3.0.

FunganomicsÂŽ harnesses the power of Web 3.0 to accentuate the premise of disintermediation allowing us to trail-blaze within the space with NFTs, Play2Earn gaming, Augmented and Virtual Reality products. Integrating all of these products with our NFT marketplace platform FungatopiaÂŽ provides our member community with a variety of streams to gain incremental revenue presented by Web 3.0s transparent economics on the blockchain.

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Can Banks Survive the Blockchain Revolution?

Deep dive into current and historic currency issues

Have you noticed that an increasing number of online businesses are stating that Bitcoin will be accepted as payment? What about certain countries like El Salvador making Bitcoin legal tender?

I know you may be surprised that Bitcoin ATMs are springing from the nooks and crannies of some countries. Have you also observed the ongoing, increasing transition from a cash to a cashless society?

This is the power of cryptocurrency, a new generation of internet-based currencies that have increased substantially in popularity and use in recent years.

With the recent issues surrounding banking with SVB is crypto currency the solution?

What is Cryptocurrency?

A cryptocurrency is a digital or virtual currency built on blockchain technology, protected by encryption, making counterfeiting virtually impossible. Cryptocurrencies are distinguished because any central authority does not issue them, making them potentially impervious to a national government or, for that matter, any centralized intervention or manipulation.

If paper money is a physical currency powered by the Central banks, consider Cryptocurrencies as simply virtual “currencies” powered by blockchain technology.

You may wonder where cryptocurrencies originate from and what gives them tangible value?

A cryptocurrency is created when a “miner” solves a complex computational challenge to confirm a transaction and add it to the blockchain ledger. However, many cryptocurrencies have a limit or maximum supply (such as Bitcoin, which has a limit of 21 million Bitcoins).

Like any other currency, cryptocurrencies values are based and dependent upon the size of the community’s and people’s involvement and adoption likewise (such as demand, scarcity, or the coin’s utility “use cases”). Ultimately, the formal agreement to use a particular cryptocurrency as money by the people to exchange goods and services gives it a true value.

What is Blockchain?

A blockchain is a decentralized ledger that records all peer-to-peer transactions. Blockchain users can easily confirm their transactions without requiring any centralized authorities to approve using this technology. Fund transfers, trade settlements, voting, and various other transactions are all possible applications facilitated via the power of Blockchain technology.

Cryptocurrencies are only made possible by harnessing the immense power of Blockchain technology.

Cryptocurrency has brought about a sea-change in the way people conduct business and associated transactions. Suddenly, currency can be traded outside traditional banks in the blink of an eye using just a cell phone, tablet or laptop computer.

As a result, people no longer have to go to or utilize a traditional bank if they need money. Peer-to-peer networks, particularly those based on cryptocurrency, are becoming more popular every day. Those who might otherwise be turned down by banks now have another viable and efficient option for funds. Not just another option, but a far better alternative for a wide variety of reasons.

Traditional banks are hesitant to embrace Crypto, even though the world of cryptocurrency is gradually developing and gaining popularity. Why? Because banks believe that the perceived risks outweigh the potential benefits and are thus considered a danger to their industry.

Are these cryptocurrencies posing a threat to existing banks? The fundamental answer is a resounding “YES”.

At a recent Barclays conference, according to Bloomberg, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said that Bitcoin is worse than the most famous asset bubble in history. The cryptocurrency is “worse than tulip bulbs” and even added that “it’s a fraud” that would eventually “blow up”. This rally “won’t end well,” Dimon said.

Not only that, the former PayPal CEO Bill Haris called Bitcoin a “scam”. There have been many attacks from the banks and, likewise, severe warnings about cryptocurrencies and Blockchain as a whole.

On the other hand, according to many cryptocurrency enthusiasts, banks are also evil and not to be trusted.

But why are the banks afraid of cryptos and, critically, how do cryptos affect banks, you may wonder?

When it comes to payment services (one of the traditional banks’ core functions), cryptocurrency already far outperforms banks. For example, cryptocurrency exchanges charge much lower transaction fees. Simply put, there are little to no commissions to pay when sending or receiving Crypto. That said, a community must spend a small amount of cryptocurrency to keep the blockchain network running effectively.

Despite the banks’ pessimism, Blockchain decentralized ledger technology (DLT), and cryptocurrencies will replace or change aspects of the banking sector continues to be debated.

But notably, banks may someday go into extinction if they do not adopt Blockchain and cryptocurrencies in general.

Why and how could this incredible situation occur?

The introduction of DeFi (decentralized finance) to the Crypto Industry is the prime disrupter that is single-handedly creating severe panic within the banking system.

DeFi stands for “decentralized finance,” a catchall word for several cryptocurrencies and blockchain-based financial applications to disrupt financial intermediaries.

DeFi is inspired by Blockchain, which underpins the digital currency Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, ensuring that a single, central source does not control it. This is significant because centralized systems can slow down and complicate transactions while giving users less direct control over their funds.

Currently, the TVL (Total Vault Locked) according to defipulse.com is $120bn, Bitcoin alone has a market cap of more than a trillion dollars, Ethereum, the second most popular cryptocurrency, exceeds $500 billion, and so on.

On Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, $78 billion is traded daily. Are you aware? $78 billion daily on a single crypto exchange? 

Shocking!

This means that a truly massive amount of money was moved away from the traditional banking system and invested instead into cryptocurrencies. And the volume of money invested in these ‘tokens’ continues growing each day rapidly.

Crypto is not just an idea or abstract concept; but instead, it is a powerful, global movement. As a result, banks could very well diminish over time if care is not taken and eventually become obsolete.

Have you not seen the PayPal team integrating Crypto into PayPal? That shows you the banks need to adopt Crypto and Blockchain to save them from extinction.

So, what precisely do traditional banks need to do so that they remain relevant and prominent in the advent of Crypto?

As we’ve mentioned and stated clearly, Crypto has a competitive edge over banks. However, the following are some promises delivered by Crypto and Blockchain in which, if the banking sector adopts them, may very well save traditional banks from collapsing.

Transparency

Because consumers perform activities on a public ledger, Blockchain makes the financial industry and transactions much more transparent than banks do. This transparency further reveals inefficiencies, such as fraud, allowing financial organizations to prevent issues, solve problems more quickly and ultimately decrease risk.

Security

The Internet remains a breeding ground for scammers as customers become more engaged in transacting online business. This concern, however, has largely been alleviated, thanks to blockchain technology.

Traditional banking payments, transactions, and money transfers are slower and less traceable, exposing the risk of theft and money loss far more than those performed on the Blockchain.

When data travels via various financial centralized intermediaries, it may be intercepted by a nefarious third-party, increasing the risk of fraud. With the help of Blockchain’s cryptographic methods, there is more robust security, and loopholes are more easily detected and blocked.

Low Transactional Costs

Blockchain allows people, mainly the everyday user, to benefit from decreased transactional costs much lower than traditional banks. More and more people are migrating away from banks to avoid their higher fees.

Using Blockchain technology, one can transfer $1000 from the USA to anywhere globally with just a $1 transaction fee within a few seconds. Amazing and cost-effective? Oh yes!

Eliminate Identity Theft

Cryptocurrency exchanges outperform banks on this issue also. How? A person merely sends the money they want to a merchant or a seller with a guaranteed, secured individual identity, nothing more.

There is zero sharing of personal information, no account name, no address, and no zip code. Thus, there is no risk of identity theft.

Eliminate Fraud

Cryptocurrency is also by its very nature fraud-proof, as it cannot be tampered with by a central government or any other third party. There is no way to counterfeit Crypto because it is both digital and decentralized, unlike conventional currency. Similarly, unlike chargebacks of credit card purchases, the sender cannot reverse the transaction.

Ubiquitous Access

Many people worldwide may not even have access to modern banking institutions, but they do have access to the Internet and mobile phones, allowing them to open a cryptocurrency wallet. Anyone who cannot use regular exchange methods can participate in the crypto economy in this manner, which is especially significant for people in developing countries as our world continues to become more globalized.

Eliminate “Middleman”

Consider when you’re buying a house, a car, or real estate. It’s usually a lengthy procedure, including lawyers, notaries, and other professionals.

Also, consider opening a bank account, the unnecessary documentation such as passports, proof of address, tax identification number, many signatory pamphlets to be signed and so on, are always tasking and a lengthy procedure.

On the other hand, contracts made using cryptocurrencies can be created without the use of third parties and reams of unnecessary documentation, significantly reducing the time it takes to settle a transaction and the associated expenses.

24×7 & 365

90% of banks will not complete wire transfers from Friday through the weekend. On the other hand, with Blockchain, and just a few clicks on your mobile phone, anyone can send money on Saturday, even on Sundays, any time, 24/7 and 365.

To remain relevant and competitive, big banks must become digitized and provide real-time services any day of the week, any time of day, similar to those offered by cryptocurrencies.

CONCLUSION

Security, chargebacks, customer service, digital services, and fees imposed are all areas where traditional banks need to improve. They undoubtedly risk being left behind and forgotten if they do not consider implementing digital alternatives beyond their conventional mobile banking system. The advantages of Blockchain and cryptocurrencies for the average consumer are just too substantial and compelling for banks to ignore.

While there may be legitimate concerns regarding digital currencies’ volatility and the potential to violate financial regulations, their growing popularity indicates a shift in consumer preferences. Traditional banks must embrace technology and provide the rapid, mobile services that so many people want.

Do you know the good news?

Some major financial institutions now appear to be accepting the notion that the technology underpinning cryptocurrencies (Blockchain) should be at least considered and properly evaluated to determine if they are truly “the next great thing”.

Assuming they proceed with caution and due diligence, there is no need for banks to fear the adoption of Blockchain and Crypto, as it will be a major plus for them.

Banks already have the name recognition and customer base, and as such, there is no need to spend heavily on marketing if they shift to Crypto and Blockchain. All they need to do is embrace the technology effectively, along with its inherent advantages, and customer trust will be preserved and retained, if not increased.

Finally, banks need to pay heed to change consumer demands. Getting on board with the digital Blockchain wave will help lessen the threat of cryptocurrency.

Hello banks, and welcome to the new world of payments!

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Augmented Reality – Over Hyped or Undervalued?

Augmented Reality – What You Need to Know.

Will we be able to point at a virtual grocery store, peruse in a virtual supermarket, visible only to us, pull a virtual shopping cart, and checkout virtually any time soon?

The dynamics of every industry have changed as a result of technological advancements. This disruption is not limited to the virtual world. Because of technological advances, people can now exist in various realms and mediums. A technology known as Augmented Reality (AR) is here to change how you work, learn, play, shop, and interact with the world.

AR technology has been around for a while. However as of more recent times it is getting noticed because we are using it in ways that we have never previously harnessed, so the technology and its integration into our daily lives has never had such a significant influence. 

Augmented reality (AR), which superimposes an image onto a user’s perspective of the real world and enhances it with sound, touch, text and even scent, is one of the most popular technology fads that’s truly shaking up the landscape at the moment. It will, however, only become more popular as AR-capable and enabled devices become more widely available over the coming years.

COVID-19 induced lockdown regulations; and social isolation has made companies worldwide invest in new methods to make connections and networks easier to use while keeping their consumers safe. Despite a global epidemic and consequent economic uncertainty, investors have increased their interest in the AR market having the foresight to see AR’s growing potential.

According to IDC, global spending on AR and VR devices, software, and services, increased by 50% in 2020 to $12 billion, and in 2020, 32% of shoppers had used augmented reality to shop at some point. In the forecast period of 2020 to 2027, the augmented reality and virtual reality market for the retail industry alone is predicted to reach $2,094.08 billion, growing at a rate of 68.5 percent. And Researchers estimate that the sector will increase by more than $125 billion by 2024, as mentioned on Businesswire.com.

What is AR? (In layman’s terms)

In simple terms, augmented reality (AR) is a technology in which designers employ computer-generated input to augment aspects of the user’s physical world. Digital material that adapts in real-time to changes in the user’s environment, such as movement, ranging from music to video to graphics to GPS overlays and more. 

You can imagine AR like Snapchat filters where you can add a dancing character, adding animal features to a human face or any character of your choice to your video. When you do that, you will notice it doesn’t completely change the scene or the environment, but it does improve your experience by adding sensory information to the observed reality; this is Augmented Reality.

Some easily confuse augmented reality with Virtual Reality (VR); despite the similarity in the nomenclature, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are not the same. The difference lies in that VR changes the environment a user is presented with. While AR, on the other hand, as earlier mentioned, will only alter and modify the current environment or scene (the actual reality).

Virtual reality immerses the user in an experience and engages with 3D worlds rather than viewing a screen in front of them. Virtual reality, in particular, creates virtual things in virtual surroundings that are meant to appear genuine. I hope you get the difference? 

Unlike virtual reality, AR does not provide an immersive experience. While Virtual Reality requires users to put on special headgear and immerse themselves in a completely digital environment, AR allows them to continue engaging with the actual world.

Augmented reality refers to a reality that has been supplemented with interactive digital elements. Users can activate their smartphone’s camera, view the real world around them on the screen, and rely on an AR application to improve and enhance that scene in a number of ways via digital overlays, just like we looked at with the example of Snapchat.

The possibilities and business opportunities are unlimited with Augmented Reality. AR tech can be used to spice up fairs, exhibits, and events; they can also be used in retail, e-commerce, communications, and so on. 

AUGMENTED REALITY AND GAMING 

In the game industry, augmented reality technology delivers an interactive experience of a real-world environment in which real-world elements are augmented. This ground-breaking technology has a more significant impact on gaming while also having use cases in other industries such as healthcare, fashion, and retail, marketing, education, etc. This cutting-edge technology is revolutionizing the gaming business and making a very significant contribution.

Video game creators have been putting in a lot of effort to bring the world of games closer to the players. For example, PokĂŠmon Go, one of the most sophisticated AR games, allows players to interact with PokĂŠmon in the real world. Players can see the real world in front of them using their smartphones. In the case of PokĂŠmon, players might use their search for PokĂŠmon to discover new parts of their city or new places they have never visited before. Amazing!

Because AR is still in the early stages of development, there are some limitations at the moment. Designers of video games are working to create a virtual environment that is free of defects; this virtual world will include proper direction alignment that adjusts in real-time as gamers move about. It will also figure out which part of the virtual world the player is interacting with. 

AR has created technology to keep players interested and to have a real-time and fascinating experience with games.

THE FUTURE OF AR AND ITS USE CASES.

With Augmented Reality software in full swing, it will impact the devices we use the most, particularly smartphones. Smartphones will converge with glasses and headsets in the future. Everything you do now on your phones, such as tweeting, uploading your Instagram, and so on, will be done with AR glasses via motion and gesture detection.

All of our senses, including touch, hearing, and sight, will be merged into next-generation AR gadgets, which will have a larger field of view and show information practically anywhere inside the user’s peripheral vision. The technology for motion gestures will also improve. Instead of typing an address into your GPS, you will be able to point to a spot and obtain instructions automatically, or you will be able to look at an object or building and receive information about it without knowing its name.

Some of the Use cases of AR include:

FASHION AND RETAIL

Case studies: 

*Sephora: a French multinational retailer of personal care and beauty products, has a mobile app with a feature called the Virtual Artist that has been used by consumers over 45million times, this app allows customers to experiment on several lipstick shades using their front camera. People who like what they see can put it in their virtual shopping cart and purchase it using their phones. 

*IKEA Place app allows users to view 3D models of precise life-size objects and how they would appear in their customers’ homes.

Have you ever gone shopping and fallen in love with something fantastic on display but you just aren’t sure how it will look in reality? Augmented Reality (AR) technology in smartphones will allow you to aim your camera at any item, log the information that the tech needs and see AR photographs of models or even you wearing the clothing to see how it will fit you after purchase. With this you can then make an informed and visual decision without having to even enter the store or make use of the changing room. In short, it saves a whole bunch of time traveling, parking, shopping, queuing and using the changing rooms.

Education

Using textbooks, papers, hand-outs, pamphlets and posters in schools to study from can consume lots of time for students let alone have some negative environmental implications but even this may now be a thing of the past or at least minimised to an option. Educational materials will be digitized and available at any time. With augmented reality, courses may even be taken using a gaming style! This will provide more people with access to education and certainly provide much higher level of student participation and engagement with the course subject.

Arts and geology students may no longer participate in field trips, museums, or art galleries since AR will bring the museum and art gallery to you and make it available at any time. Now it has to be said that there is real and intrinsic value in an actual experience of our natural world and fine arts first hand. But there are times where, dictated by certain logistics such as cost, distance, a persons physical ability or simply time, that these visits are just not viable options. There are times where a families financial situation may lead to a student being segregated from those that can afford an expensive international trip arranged by their school or college. This can be negated with AR.  Imagine regardless of finances that all can visit the Mona Lisa by entering a classroom with just a little clear wall space. These are only a few of the potential applications of augmented reality in education, and it will undoubtedly transform the educational process. 

As a result of COVID-19, schools were closed across the whole world. By allowing the materials in textbooks to come to life, AR can assist parents and teachers in making the learning process a pleasant and intriguing experience. For example, suppose a student is reading about the compiled speeches of Barak Obama or any other historical event. In that case, they can use their smartphone camera to capture a lifelike representation of Obama presenting those speeches during that occasion.

This technology can also benefit students studying remotely; say they are learning a subject tough to grasp, AR can help. Let’s imagine a medical student researching a particular human heart  or brain component. Print and video materials will not be as useful as AR since they do not provide the same level of immersion and interactivity. They may employ Augmented Reality to acquire a vivid representation of whatever they’re learning, which no textbook can do.

HealthCare

AR may provide visual demonstrations or consumer scanning functionality to assist patients in understanding the benefits and hazards of certain medications and treatments. It can also assist doctors by making realistic gaming simulations of how to operate and providing a very intuitive portrayal of the human body to the medical students.

Security and Safety

Security and Safety is one of the areas AR may be applicable by giving detailed 3D maps of locations where a rescue mission is needed, also providing first responders with the most information possible before they start their rescue attempt or during their rescue crystal clear vision of their environment during a heavy rain or snow storm. How about training and helping employees who operate machinery on-site within the manufacturing and construction industries? There you can see other significant positive impacts on safety and a reduction in time to train. Clearly it far supersedes any textbooks’ ability to impart that information.

Entertainment & Gaming

The entertainment business is thriving because of mobile gaming apps like Pokemon Go, allowing users to catch Pokemon using their cellphones’ cameras. AR transforms the user’s environment into an interactive game environment. The user is absorbed in the game due to this, giving gaming a whole new level. Augmented Reality places characters in real-time situations and adds to the game’s natural feel. Pokemon Go’s have also made the game realistic to users’ real-world surroundings by allowing users to only locate particular Pokemon in their native habitat which adds to the excitement of the game.

TECHNOLOGY OF CONVENIENCE

With the above-listed use cases, it is no doubt that AR will be the new technology of convenience to humans. Consider Last year, due to COVID-19, there was lockdown, movement and traveling were restricted, and everyone was confined to their houses, and even vacations were cut off due to lockdowns. Despite these impediments, AR/VR technology has allowed people worldwide to visit new countries, towns, museums, and restaurants without leaving their homes.

AR/VR has enabled businesses and organizations to provide innovative consumer experiences. Although People are returning to their usual normal way of life as immunization rates increase, AR/VR experiences like virtual tourism (which is a more sustainable, economical, and time-sensitive alternative to traditional traveling) are here to stay. 

The whole world may experience another lockdown and restriction in movement due to what  is being referred to as the arrival of the new OMICRON variant, but AR is here to cater for many setbacks that any further lockdowns may bring to our daily way of life.

AUGMENTED REALITY AND BLOCKCHAIN

Logging on to the web to download any digital files, say a digital art, for example, is easy but it is difficult to tell whether the downloaded digital art is the original unique copy or just a copy.

Blockchain allows the design of theft-proof unique assets that cannot be reproduced, which helps to safeguard intellectual property. NFT’s that are making waves on the internet is a classic example. Blockchain gives developers, creators of digital assets in AR and even VR the ability to provide virtual assets with unique distinct features – and thus a value.

Blockchain will allow digital content creators to produce and sell AR content by preventing copyright infringement by assigning a unique identifying code.

A good case study is what Lampix Technology does in this scenario by merging the blockchain, Augmented Reality, and machine vision to track virtual data between consumers and cafes, bars, and restaurants.

Companies are now combining blockchain technology with Augmented Reality and with Virtual Reality in some cases to market virtual assets such as virtual real estate and also explore other opportunities. 

Companies are now adopting and investing in AR. One of the notable companies in Apple which have shown interest in Augmented Reality. Apple has acquired Metaoi in 2015, a company that specializes in augmented reality software. Also, the latest iPhone models (the iPhone 8, 8 plus, and X) are all powered by A11 bionic circuits, which are robust and AR-friendly. 

According to Apple’s Official Website, Apple has the world’s largest AR platform, with hundreds of millions of AR‑enabled devices, as well as thousands of AR apps on the App Store. And because Apple hardware and software are designed from the ground up for AR, there is no better way to experience AR.

The corporation is working on wireless specifications that will allow users to overlay digital material in the natural environment. With LiDAR technology on the iPhone 12 Pro, Apple has already made gains in AR technology on the iPhone and iPad. One crucial development in the AR industry will be the coming of Apple’s AR headset in 2022. As rumoured, the device could support both Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), as well as micro-OLED displays.

AR is here to stay and capable and will surely revolutionize the future, and many companies are taking up all opportunities to capitalize on all of the benefits. Because of Augmented Reality, all of our everyday duties will become redundant in the future. If you’re bored with your work, for example, there will be various immersive entertainment options to spice it up. The office, as you know it, may no longer exist. Your office, meetings, computer, and other resources will be accessible from anywhere on the planet, removing the need to commute or at least providing companies with this alternative for their employees. 

This is just the beginning of the real world meeting the virtual world in many exciting ways. Funganomics see this as an integral part of our company expansion whilst relishing the opportunities it provides to consumers and businesses to interact in ways that would have not have been possible before. 

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Dogecoin – How? Why? What’s Next?

How and Why was Dogecoin Created?

Dogecoin was created by IBM software engineer Billy Markus and Adobe software engineer Jackson Palmer, who actually made it as a joke coin after being inspired by the ‘doge’ meme that was popular at the time, featuring a Shiba Inu. Markus tweeted at Palmer saying he wanted to go in on the venture, and before Palmer even responded, started reconfiguring Bitcoin’s source code, which was publicly available, to turn its user-facing elements into the doge meme.

Eventually Palmer wrote back, and the partnership was formed. A little more than a week after Palmer’s joke tweet, Dogecoin was launched on December  6th of 2013.

Before the product was released, Palmer, who’d been following developments in the cryptocurrency world, absentmindedly tweeted, “Investing in Dogecoin, pretty sure it’s the next big thing.”

He got some replies encouraging him to pursue the idea, and a week later bought the domain Dogecoin.com. Inevitably, the idea got picked up on reddit, a hotbed of doge activity in 2013.

Meanwhile, in Portland, Billy Markus had been trying to program his own digital currency that would appeal to a broader demographic than the profiteers who’ve flooded into Bitcoin since the currency was released in 2008. But the project had gone nowhere. Then he stumbled across Dogecoin.com within a day or two of the site going live.

After some time, Palmer decided to step away from the project, believing that it had no future and that the joke had now gotten old. However, the coin became a crypto community favourite and somehow it has managed to remain popular to this day. In recent years, it attracted the attention of Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, which catapulted its price higher than ever.

As mentioned, Dogecoin originated simply as a joke cryptocurrency. Its creators thought it would be funny to create a coin based on a popular meme. Inspired by both the Doge meme and the cryptocurrency sector, Markus and Palmer set out to create a peer-to-peer (P2P) digital currency that could reach a greater number of people than Bitcoin.

At the time (December 2013), Bitcoin and indeed, the entire crypto market was mostly unknown and pretty much exclusively used by developers, online criminals, and tech geeks. The sector’s short history was already tainted due to its ties to cybercriminals, accusations of money laundering, tax evasion, and assorts of nefarious speculation. Bitcoin’s creator/s Satoshi Nakamoto fully intended that cryptocurrencies take power away from the banks and corrupt or greedy centralised organisations so this really did not make the cryptocurrency sector popular among financial institutions. Some would argue with due reason that this remains the main source for resistance against the blockchain related currency movement today.

So Palmer and Markus decided on a kind of tongue- in- cheek way to make a coin that would bring humour and lightheartedness to the controversial crypto industry but also to make sure that it would distance itself from controversial coins in the very spirit of what it was trying to achieve (smiles). The word spread quickly, despite the small size of the crypto sector at the time and DOGE already had over a million visitors within its very first month of existence. Impressive stuff on the back of a joke.

How Does Dogecoin Work?

Dogecoin’s mechanics are based on Litecoin, which was one of the earliest ‘altcoins’ sometimes referred to as the ‘silver to Bitcoin’s gold.’ DOGE uses Proof-of-Work technology, which means that it can be mined, much like BTC and LTC.

However, unlike Bitcoin and Litecoin, whose supplies are capped at 21 million and 84 million respectively, DOGE does not have a maximum supply and can be mined indefinitely. At the time of writing, Dogecoin has nearly 133 billion coins in circulation, while LTC has only 71 million coins and Bitcoin has 19.1 million units in circulation.

Dogecoin is not a smart contract platform, so it doesn’t have dApps, DeFi protocols and other advanced features. Its main benefits are that it is cheap and fast, and it is a popular choice for transferring money between exchanges since it has very low fees – much lower than Bitcoin or Ethereum.

But, since even fun money is still money, Dogecoin’s community has found many uses for their cryptocurrency. Of course, DOGE can always be used for trading and investing like any other crypto but in January 2014 DOGE also turned its attention to charity and the community raised $30,000 in DOGE for the Jamaican bobsled team in order to send it to that year’s Winter Olympics. They also raised $32,000 to supply Kenya with clean water. Admirable to say the least. This has led many to make comment that Dogecoin’s community is one of its strongest assets. 

What made Dogecoin so popular?

As mentioned, DOGE is a very cheap coin to use, which is why it is often used for transacting money. This quickly became a very popular use and for a long time DOGE fees were next to nothing – a fraction of a cent. This has been the case until quite recently as 2021 brought lots of attention to Dogecoin.

As the price of DOGE increased, so did fees. Dogecoin reached the largest average fee around February 8th of 2021 when its price was surging as a consequence of viral attention from Elon Musk and users of crypto-oriented Reddit groups. DOGE fans and holders initiated an ad-hoc viral marketing campaign to piggyback off of the success of other cryptos and it worked, sending DOGE fees from less than $0.01 per transaction to $0.3125. This was the highest fee in Dogecoin’s history. It must be mentioned that the time of writing, however, DOGE is still fairly popular and its fees have once again dropped to a relatively negligible amount.

Dogecoin also has withdrawal fees on certain crypto platforms. Some platforms allow free DOGE withdrawals and some have fees that can go from circa $0.05 to $0.11 while some platforms may charge fees costing several dollars for very large withdrawals.

What Teams Are Working On Dogecoin Development?

We know that Dogecoin was worked on by Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus, its co-founders and original developers. For years, DOGE was wandering through the crypto industry rudderless but the surging price and interest in the token have over the last few years resurrected its tech development.

Dogecoin had a number of developers over the years, such as Michi Lumin and Ross Nicoll, who had previously contributed to the coin for the last time in October 2019. With DOGE being resurrected in 2021, Nicoll and four other developers have started working on upgrading the coin’s software. They have found that the biggest problem is actually scalability as the existing nodes allow outbound connections but not inbound connections as node users are not disabling their firewall to allow incoming connections from peer nodes.

While DOGE doesn’t have a massive development team, it does have a dedicated community that is trying to solve one issue at a time, which might be quite a task, given that technical development at DOGE did not move much over the past few years.

Can Dogecoin Be Used Anonymously?

It should be noted that Dogecoin is not a privacy coin – which is a class of cryptocurrencies that are meant to be used for anonymous payments. Thanks to blockchain explorers most crypto transactions can now be followed with ease, especially since exchanges require their users to verify their accounts.

In this way if you create an account on an exchange and verify your identity, buy Dogecoin and withdraw it to your wallet, we can see who that wallet belongs to and how many coins you have in it. The only way to buy DOGE anonymously would be to use Peer-to-Peer platforms where you would send individual money directly via a bank transfer or cash and they in turn send DOGE to you. In this way your wallet would not be tied to your identity. 

Another option is to mine the coin and obtain it directly from the source but once again your identity would become known as soon as you connect your wallet to an exchange where your account is verified.

The last option would be to use crypto mixers after purchasing coins on exchanges. Others would still be able to learn that you bought DOGE but they wouldn’t know which coins are yours or which wallet you hold.

How Safe Is Dogecoin?

Dogecoin is as safe as any cryptocurrency. In other words, you are always exposed to risks when it comes to the inherent volatility of crypto assets. Also, if you leave your coins on an exchange, they can be hacked and your coins could be permanently stolen from you. Using hardware wallets can help to prevent this.

Dogecoin itself is a safe coin. It is decentralized, and as such, it is obviously not a scam. It has never given any major promises that would attract people, other than the chance to own a very cheap token just for fun so it never really tried seriously to attract investors.

The only real danger would be 51% attacks on Dogecoin’s blockchain, but given that the coin is popular and it has over 1,300 full nodes, this should not be a major risk, as anyone conducting a 51% attack would have to hack more than half of devices that are running a full Dogecoin node. So, other than investing too heavily in it DOGE doesn’t come with major risks and dangers.

Which Financial Institutions Are Invested in Dogecoin?

So far, Dogecoin has not attracted any major financial institutions. For the most part financial institutions and institutional investors have opted to stick to Bitcoin and Ethereum with a handful of them exploring certain decentralised finance (DeFi) projects.

DOGE, on the other hand, has attracted Musk as a major supporter. He frequently posts seemingly jokey tweets promoting DOGE but has not ever confirmed an investment or at least at what quantity.

The uprise of Dogecoin

Dogecoin has continued to capture public attention as Musk and rapper Snoop Dogg sent out a flurry of tweets, driving up the price of the meme-currency.

This kind of positive celebrity attention / endorsement can only work for the benefit of the coin. For example Musk has tweeted an instructional YouTube video on Dogecoin, while Snoop Dogg uploaded a picture of the dog that inspired Dogecoin with the caption “@elonmusk.”

Musk has been actively tweeting about the currency since its copycat rally to GameStop. Dogecoin surged over 600% driven by the Reddit mania surrounding the GameStop announcement at the end of 2021 that they will accept Dogecoin as payment.

Redditors helped Dogecoin develop its own subculture in 2013

The digital currency instantly exploded on Reddit, generating a market value of $8 million at the time. It became popular for the internet practice of ‘tipping’, which was a way of repaying people on the web for performing ‘good deeds’, like sharing an idea or making a platform more accessible.

Only about a week after launching, Dogecoin became the second-most-tipped currency.

The digital currency has long contributed to a culture that distinguishes itself by a sort of irreverence for institutions like Wall Street. It’s not surprising Reddit users would take up the stock alongside GameStop and AMC in trading against big hedge funds.

Dogecoin developed its own culture of sorts largely due to the currency having a lower barrier of entry than Bitcoin for people who might be interested in cryptocurrencies.

In 2017, the currency crossed a new milestone – $2 billion market value (today $8.8 billion).

The digital coin’s rally, much like GameStop’s rally that was in part driven by Reddit users from WallStreetBets, has been fuelled by the subreddit SatoshiStreetBets, where users planned to send the currency ‘to the moon’ or at least to their goal of $1 per coin.

Dogecoin saw similar efforts in July when an unsuccessful TikTok trend called for forcing the coin to equal a US dollar. Redditors have a long way to go before the coin’s price is equivalent to a dollar; since Dogecoin currently holds around $0.07.

Since its surge in 2020 which concluded in May 2021, Dogecoin hasn’t experienced any real significant news save the Gamestop announcement. In November 2021 most cryptocurrencies reached new all-time highs, while Dogecoin investment appears to have lost steam in the middle of the year and never recovered.

Analysts are divided on whether Dogecoin has what it takes to reach new highs in the future. Which way will Dogecoin go? In 2022, is DOGE a wise investment?

Some reasons why Dogecoin may currently be a wise cryptocurrency investment:

For many years, Dogecoin was a sleeper, but around 2020 when Musk became interested and things started to change. In addition to price increases, the abandoned Dogecoin development team returned and performed technical adjustments to the Dogecoin code.

Dogecoin is decentralized. Decentralization has value if the recent fall of popular cryptocurrencies has taught us anything. Decentralized cryptocurrencies eliminate single points of failure. Despite its sluggish speeds and expensive costs, it is one aspect that makes Ethereum valuable.

One of the most decentralized cryptocurrencies on the market right now is Dogecoin. Anyone can mine DOGE without expensive mining equipment because it uses a Proof-of-Work algorithm. This indicates many supporters of the Dogecoin network throughout the world. 

Dogecoin is one of the safer cryptocurrencies to buy now and retain for the long term due to its high level of decentralization. As more investors begin to value decentralization, Dogecoin may experience significant gains. It’s one of the factors that makes Dogecoin, despite being a meme coin, one of the most valuable cryptocurrencies to invest in and keep in 2022.

Dogecoin occupies a highly distinct market niche.

Positioning is essential for success in any market. The cryptocurrency market operates similarly. Because of its positioning as possible digital gold, Bitcoin, for instance, is where it is right now.

Dogecoin is the foundation for most of the other meme coins available today. Due to its market positioning, Dogecoin has an advantage over most of the main DOGE rivals on the market. As a result, Dogecoin may set the example for the other meme coins to follow if the overall cryptocurrency market regains strength.

Community

Similarly, Dogecoin, the first and largest meme coin, has created a community around itself. The Dogecoin community is vibrant and expanding. Since its inception, the district has been one of Dogecoin’s main supports. The network now numbers millions and has well-known members like Elon Musk and Mark Cuban – another billionaire entrepreneur. These are obviously extremely wealthy individuals who also have a sizeable social media following. As a result, every time they mention Dogecoin, they attract additional investors. 

This could cause Dogecoin to become one of the best-performing cryptocurrencies in the future. Consider that since Musk and other community members began promoting DOGE, the number of businesses that accept Dogecoin has increased rapidly. This gives you an idea of how much influence the community has on Dogecoin.

As the community grows, more cryptocurrency novices will likely select Dogecoin as their first investment. That should give anyone on the fence about investing in Dogecoin more confidence. It makes sense for many investors to include Dogecoin in a cryptocurrency growth portfolio for the years 2022 and beyond even for this reason alone.

Dogecoin makes ordinary transactions easy

Adoption is the key to a cryptocurrency’s long-term success. Even after the initial enthusiasm has worn off, this is what is anticipated to drive the price. The typical transaction cost is one of the essential elements in deciding if a cryptocurrency is suitable for everyday transactions.

Comparing Dogecoin to Bitcoin or Ethereum, the number of transactions is almost tiny. A few minutes are all it takes for Dogecoin transactions to be confirmed. Additionally, unlike centralized systems like banks, Dogecoin’s decentralized nature ensures users that their transactions cannot be controlled.

These appealing qualities make Dogecoin a potentially wise cryptocurrency investment for a trader who has faith in the future of cryptocurrencies. When Dogecoin becomes more widely accepted as a form of payment, increased demand may counteract its inflationary effects. To date, more than 20 large businesses, including the Dallas Mavericks, accept Dogecoin payments. It’s a promising sign for the direction Dogecoin might take in the future.

Dogecoin is available on several exchanges

The fact that Dogecoin is one of the few meme coins listed on nearly all significant cryptocurrency exchanges should be considered. Even on Robinhood, a website that Americans adore for being a beginner-friendly broker, Dogecoin is listed.

Multiple listings have positive effects on Dogecoin in different ways. As a result, Dogecoin has become a highly liquid cryptocurrency that is less susceptible to manipulation. At the same time, it implies that novice investors have a simple way to access Dogecoin during bull markets. It’s a factor that might raise the price of Dogecoin during bull markets. This became especially clear in May 2021 when a buying frenzy on Robinhood propelled Dogecoin to record levels.

Due to its growing popularity, Dogecoin may hit new highs in the upcoming bull run, given that more exchanges are now listing it. It’s a compelling argument to consider using Dogecoin in a portfolio of cryptocurrencies in 2022.

The durability of Dogecoin has been established

Do you intend to make a long-term investment in cryptocurrencies? Then you may want to consider cryptocurrencies that have not only been widely publicized but also demonstrated their ability to endure.  This is significant since numerous coins have come and gone since the crypto industry was established in 2009. Interestingly, Dogecoin, a parody coin with limited practical use has endured everything. It is now the oldest meme coin and one of the most successful meme coins ever created.

Due to the recent collapse of a cryptocurrency worth billions of dollars, currencies like Dogecoin, which has shown a clear survival element may experience tremendous growth in the future. For anyone who thinks cryptocurrencies are the wave of the future of finance this can be one of the main reasons Dogecoin may be a coin to get involved in. If Dogecoin’s history is anything to refer to, it will indeed exist for decades and may be worth significantly more than it is now.

Dogecoin can be scaled

Scalability is one of the main obstacles to bitcoin adoption. The likelihood that a cryptocurrency will ever be able to compete with centralized systems is minimal if millions of users cannot use it without experiencing network issues.

This issue has never existed with Dogecoin. Since it is so widely utilized, network outages and delayed confirmation speeds are seldom a problem in cryptocurrencies with the potential for broad adoption, scaling places DOGE in the lead. Because adoption and long-term value growth are intertwined Dogecoin may be taken seriously.

What are the benefits / pros of Dogecoin?

The biggest benefits of Dogecoin are its fast transaction processing speeds and low transaction costs.

Low transaction costs: As mentioned previously even the highest transaction costs were just $0.31 which is practically nothing compared to Ethereum’s fees which can go up to $50 (or sometimes significantly more) or Bitcoin fees which were known to go above $40 during particularly busy, high-volume periods.

Cheap mining: n other aspects, DOGE can be mined cheaply and it can be used to send money to anyone which makes it a great choice for making international transactions almost instantly. Plus, it can also be used for payments.

Payment means adoption: Originally, it was not very popular as a payment method given that no one was accepting it but over the years, merchants willing to accept Dogecoin started to emerge and more vendors are now accepting it as a means of payment for goods and services.

Fast & secure: Transactions are transparent, fast, and secure, so DOGE might be a good choice if you can find those who accept it as a means for your payment.

Access: DOGE is very accessible. It can also be bought via multiple payment methods, such as; debit cards, PayPal, credit cards and more.

Dogecoin Wallet: Dogecoin has its own wallet that can be downloaded for mobile or other devices, but it can also be stored in many other wallets, such as the Trust Wallet, Trezor, Ledger Nano models, and others.

Of course, storing DOGE in your exchange wallet is the easiest method, as it will be instantly available for trading. However, this is not recommended as you will then not be the owner of the private keys, and if you don’t own the keys – you can never truly say that you own the coin. Plus, the funds can be stolen from the exchange if it gets hacked. If you were to lock up your DOGE in cold storage, only you would ever have access to it.

What are the downsides / cons of Dogecoin?

Infinite supply: The infinite supply of Dogecoin can be seen as one of its main disadvantages. Every year, 5 billion DOGE are put into circulation, which will always be the case. These coins could bring down the price unless they are entirely absorbed in a situation of exceptionally high demand. Given that cryptocurrencies are still in their infancy and have not yet experienced widespread adoption, there is a chance that the growing supply of Dogecoin will outpace the price in short to medium term. 

As a result, Dogecoin carries a greater risk than a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin, which has a small and fixed supply. The lack of a supply cap is one of the biggest disadvantages of Dogecoin. This is because cryptocurrencies with no supply cap are unideal assets to hedge against inflation. Furthermore, DOGE’s infinite mining will eventually require more expansive blockchain mining activities. And since it uses the proof-of-work mechanism, it will further expand its pool of miners and the number of computers to support the ever-growing increase in transactions.

Its jovial disposition may contradict real innovation: DOGE was initially developed to poke jokes at existing coins like Bitcoin and Litecoin. This nature obstructs DOGE from integrations and adoption as a digital asset.

Poor technical support: Dogecoin has relatively poor technical support despite its growing community of users and supporters. DOGE’s development team is not as big as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Cardano. Also, there have been no technological updates and changes from DOGE since 2015. It is also important to highlight the fact that it does not offer any unique selling proposition in terms of technology.

Association with pump and dump schemes: Pump and dump schemes have been in existence for a long time. Though it is prohibited on regulated crypto exchanges, it still has its influence on certain cryptos. Pumping is where a group of people purchase a large number of coins, which increases the price of the asset substantially. Once the coin reaches a higher value than what they were bought for, they release the assets to other buyers and take back a huge return. This manipulation is quite common with DOGE.

It is not the best transactional currency: Unlike other currencies such as Tronic and Ether, which functions as a transactional currency, Dogecoin can currently only be used as a digital currency. Cryptos like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dash, and Bitcoin Cash have more transactional significance in the market than DOGE.

DOGE introduced crypto millionaires and billionaires to the future of technology that they did not know would exist. But despite its achievements, investors should always test the waters before trading currencies like these.

To summarise Dogecoin

Dogecoin was initially intended to be a crypto satire, but it has grown beyond the founders’ initial vision to rank among the top 20 cryptocurrencies. After Bitcoin‘s popularity, there was an explosion of different cryptocurrencies, many of which had no use. Jack Palmer and Billy Markus, two engineers, were inspired to lampoon the market as a result, and Dogecoin was the ideal vehicle for their efforts. They produced Dogecoin, a worthless coin with an infinite supply. In contrast to the two creators’ expectations, Dogecoin went on to develop a unique community. Over time, the district expanded to the point where Elon Musk expressed interest in Dogecoin in 2020.

Since 2020, an unprecedented Dogecoin rally led by Musk has increased the number of businesses that accept Dogecoin payments. Due to its rising usage, Dogecoin has a promising future. But is Elon Musk the only factor contributing to Dogecoin’s popularity as a cryptocurrency in 2022?

No, many other factors make Dogecoin one of the most significant cryptocurrencies to invest in and retain for the long term. In 2022, would Dogecoin still be a promising cryptocurrency to invest in?

The best investment strategy might not involve betting everything on Dogecoin. Remember that risk exists in even deflationary cryptocurrencies, and DOGE is no exception. In short some would strongly advise including Dogecoin in a diversified cryptocurrency portfolio.

If we take the fact that the development team had given up on Dogecoin until Elon Musk became interested it may indicate that despite Dogecoin’s long existence, the community does not support it sufficiently to continue enhancing its technical capabilities.

This is a significant danger because it suggests that developer interest can depend on how enthusiastic celebrity investors like Elon Musk are about DOGE. A developer might stop supporting Dogecoin, just as they did previously if someone like Musk were to sell all of his Dogecoin holdings publicly.

There are numerous Dogecoin pump and dump strategies. Dogecoin has frequently been the target of pump and dump scams since it is mainly seen as a joke currency. This means there is always a chance to lose money if you invest in a fake Dogecoin surge and then sell your cryptocurrency after the whales have sold all of their positions. While this may certainly become less dangerous as Dogecoin acceptance rises but it is still a significant risk in short to medium term. Because of this, it makes sense for Dogecoin investors to store DOGE alongside other high-potential cryptocurrencies and invest only what they can afford to lose.

The likelihood may be that DOGE is a significant investment and here are two reasons why some argue that it is a strategical idea to buy Dogecoin right now:

  1. The 4-year crypto cycle

The cryptocurrency market is currently experiencing a severe bear run. If previous crypto cycles provide any indication, the market will likely reach new highs by 2024. In summary, now is a fantastic moment to invest in high-potential cryptocurrencies that are anticipated to experience a significant increase in value during the upcoming down market.

One of the cryptocurrencies that can increase in value during the upcoming crypto bull run will be Dogecoin itself. This is because Dogecoin’s popularity has increased since 2021, and now businesses like Tesla accept it as payment. In addition, Dogecoin’s community is more vital now than ever.

In essence, Dogecoin will likely be worth more in 2024 than it is now. This, together with the bear market hype, may cause it to reach new highs, possibly at $1 or more. Because of this, buying Dogecoin today and holding it for the long term may be considered by some a sound strategy.

  1. The development crew has returned

After years of absence the Dogecoin development team came back in 2021. They have been striving to improve Dogecoin, including addressing all network issues. This indicates that confidence in the Dogecoin network will probably improve over time as the development team are forced to take the project more seriously. The same will increase adoption, which will increase Dogecoin’s intrinsic value. As a result, Dogecoin has tremendous potential for future value increase.

Non financial advice – a few more things to consider for information purposes only:

  1. Only invest in Dogecoin with money you can lose
  2. Purchase during market downturns like this and sell during bull markets
  3. Purchase Dogecoin only from reliable cryptocurrency exchanges
  4. Ensure that your account is secure, including by utilizing 2-FA
  5. A hardware or software wallet (keeping control over your keys) is the ideal place to keep them
  6. Diversify; make investments in additional cryptocurrencies in case Dogecoin turns out to underperform the market

Elon Musk has vowed to continue supporting Dogecoin despite the recent fall of the cryptocurrency market. This is significant news because he is one of the main factors for Dogecoin’s recent success. For this reason, 2022 investors might consider Dogecoin a suitable cryptocurrency investment.

But every intelligent investor is aware that there are no risk-free investments. To invest in Dogecoin, like any other investment, you must be informed of the hazards involved.

Dogecoin has an infinite supply of coins. The infinite supply of Dogecoin is one of its main disadvantages. Every year, 5 billion DOGE are put into circulation, which will always be the case. These coins could bring down the price unless they are entirely absorbed in a situation of exceptionally high demand. Given that cryptocurrencies are still in their infancy and have not yet experienced widespread adoption there is a chance that the growing supply of Dogecoin will outpace the price in short to medium term.

As a result, Dogecoin carries a greater risk than a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin, which has a small and fixed supply.

The best investment strategy might not involve betting everything on Dogecoin. Remember that risk exists in even deflationary cryptocurrencies, and DOGE can be considered as no exception. In essence, it’s advisable to include Dogecoin in a diversified cryptocurrency portfolio if you do invest.

Doge has been subject to a $0.74 high but when we look at todays year over year we can observe Aug 2021 at $0.20 and August 2022 $0.07. 

Because of this, it makes sense for Dogecoin investors to store DOGE alongside other high-potential cryptocurrencies and invest only what they can afford to lose.

Is Dogecoin a wise investment? Well Musk has vowed to continue supporting Dogecoin despite the recent fall of the cryptocurrency market. That alone simply cannot be underestimated. The following of this entrepreneur is absolutely gargantuan and most will take his advice seriously. Even if for this reason alone 2022 investors might consider Dogecoin a suitable cryptocurrency investment.

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Tether USDT – A Comprehensive Look at the Stablecoin

How was Tether born?

You see in the beginning and from the darkness of nothing the Mastercoin protocol became the technological foundation of the Tether cryptocurrency. One of the original members of Mastercoin Foundation- Brock Pierce, became a co-founder of Tether. and Tether founder, Craig Sellars, became the CTO of the Mastercoin Foundation. So where’s the light?

Well, Tether has one of the most popular and widely used cryptocurrencies in this beautifully creative market, a stablecoin called tether (USDT).

If we travel a little farther back to before the big bang (let’s appease the atheist readers here) the protocol Tether is closely connected to the crypto exchange Bitfinex as it shares the same parent company, iFinex Inc. iFinex was founded in 2012 in Hong Kong although it’s registered in the British Virgin Islands.

Tether’s history goes back to 2014, when it first issued a dollar-backed digital currency called Realcoin on the Bitcoin network to help transfer fiat currencies on the blockchain. Later that year, Realcoin was rebranded to what? You guessed it…Tether. And so it was born. Tether refers to the issuer company, while Tether USDT is the token.

Since then, like daisies in the summer, Tether has expanded to numerous blockchains, launched various tokens and skyrocketed in popularity. As of the end of August 2022, the USDT circulating supply is 68 billion. Yes that’s a ‘b’ and it is the largest Stablecoin by marketcap at a current 1:1 ration ($68 billion). Impressive stuff.

How does Tether’s USDT work?

Tether’s cryptocurrencies belong to a special subset of digital assets called stablecoins, which means their prices are anchored, or pegged, to a less-volatile asset.

Stablecoins serve as an important link between the real world and cryptocurrencies. With their prices tied to a stable asset such as a central bank-issued (fiat) currency like the U.S. dollar. Stablecoins aim to shield crypto holders from volatility and are well-suited for transactions and trades on and even between blockchains.

Tether is a fiat-collateralized stablecoin that offers individuals the advantages of transacting with blockchain-based assets while attempting to mitigate price risk. Tether is primarily issued on the Ethereum and Bitcoin blockchains and corresponds on a 1:1 basis with US Dollars sitting in bank accounts.

As mentioned it was founded in July 2014 by Brock Pierce, Craig Sellars, and another chap Reeve Collins. Tether (USDT), originally known as “Realcoin”, is a cryptocurrency commonly known as a stablecoin that aims to keep a fixed 1:1 exchange ratio with the U.S. dollar. Tether was one of the earliest stablecoins created, built upon Mastercoin (Omni), which was a protocol layer for Bitcoin that introduced the stablecoin concept to the world back in 2012. So Tether pioneered what is now known as a fiat-collateralized stablecoin model, and is now the most widely used stablecoin today.

What problems does Tether solve?

Tether was created as an attempt to solve two major issues with existing cryptocurrencies: high volatility and convertibility between fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies. To address these perceived issues Tether created a cryptocurrency that is fully backed 1:1 by deposits of U.S. dollars held at banks. 

On Ethereum, USDT tokens are represented as ERC-20 tokens, while on Bitcoin, Tether utilizes the Omni layer, to represent USDT tokens. While the tokens themselves operate in a decentralized network, Hong Kong based Tether Ltd is solely responsible for creating and redeeming tokens as well as maintaining the 1:1 deposit backing.

Exchanges have been the primary users of USDT as an alternative to fiat currencies, reducing or eliminating the need to maintain outside banking relationships. Amongst a few recognizable names amongst these exchanges utilizing the token are: Bitfinex, Bittrex, Binance, OKEx, Coinbase, Kraken, Huobi, Poloniex, liquid.io and Gate.io. Tether Ltd shares many executives as it has strong ties with Hong Kong based Bitfinex as we see both sharing the same parent organization (iFinex Inc. if you’ve been listening and if you did get that correct…full marks!)

Since its founding in 2014, Tether has been the subject of past controversy due to the failure of Tether to provided audited financial statements proving it has adequate reserves backing USDT. Naughty naughty. Historically Tether  failed to disclose its banking relationships, only announcing its banking partners in November 2018 to quell rumors about its solvency raised by associated crypto exchange, Bitfinex.

In March 2019, Tether did the right thing and updated its disclosure statement claiming that its tokens are no longer backed 100% by U.S. dollar deposits. Tether is instead now backed 100% backed by reserves, which include traditional currency and cash equivalents and from time to time, other assets and receivables from loans made by Tether to third parties, which may include affiliated entities.

With all this talk of a Stablecoin – what is it?

What Is a Stablecoin?

Tether issues several fiat stablecoins and one that is pegged to gold. The most widespread among them is the U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT, with that circulating supply we talked about of circa 73 billion tokens.

Other Tether-issued stablecoins are:

Tether gold (AUXT): pegged to gold’s price
Tether euro (EURT): pegged to the common currency of the European Union
Tether peso (MXNT) : pegged to the Mexican peso
Tether yuan (CNHT): pegged to the offshore Chinese yuan

But Tether doesn’t have its own blockchain. Instead, users can transact with USDT on and across some of the bigger blockchain platforms including:

  • Ethereum
  • Tron
  • Algorand
  • Solana
  • Avalanche
  • Polygon 

USDT is not mined and it is not decentralized. It has a central entity, the company Tether, that issues (mints) and destroys (burns) USDT tokens to adjust the supply of coins to user demand.

What backs USDT’s value?

Tether claims its Stablecoins’ value is always 100% backed by assets in its reserve to ensure the one-to-one exchange ratio to the currency (or asset) to which their prices are anchored. 

Now when you enter a casino one late, possibly drunken Saturday evening they will always have enough cash in its vault to cover every chip you and everyone else has in play. The reserve serves as a guarantee that if everyone wanted to convert USDT into fiat, they could.

Tether publishes a quarterly attestation (not to be confused with an audit) breaking down its reserves by asset classes right there on its website and updates total value of the assets every single day. Well done chaps, jolly good show.

According to its latest report, Tether’s reserve contains a diverse mix of:

  • Cash
  • Cash equivalents (money market funds, U.S. Treasuring Bills)
  • Commercial Paper
  • Corporate Bonds
  • Loans
  • Investment including digital currencies 

Now you may heard whispers that some backing is slightly questionable. How so?

Why USDT’s backing is controversial

The transparency and authenticity of the reserve has been called into question from time to time by those playing, frolicking and trading in the crypto world.

Tether only started to publish reports on their assets in early 2021 but still does not specify exactly what assets it holds. This has been the cause of a fair share of frustration and the attestation itself is not verified by an independent auditor.

What’s causing the most concern here? The most scrutiny has been on the non-cash holdings including what they are, how they are valued and how easily Tether can convert them into cash if, indeed, Stablecoin holders want to redeem their initial investment at once.

In 2019, New York Attorney General’s office (NYAG) launched a probe into whether the cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex sought to cover up the loss of $850 million in customer and corporate funds held by Tether, the payment processor.

After almost two years, Tether and Bitfinex reached a settlement with NYAG in February 2021 to pay $18.5 million in fines (ouch) and to release a quarterly report describing the reserve’s composition for the next two years.

How USDT is different from other stablecoins

Once Tether’s USDT dominated the Stablecoin market, but now there is a wide selection of Stablecoins available. Some of the ways they differ depends on the issuer entity, the collateral that backs the value and how they keep their prices pegged to the fiat currency or other asset. Tether follows the IOU (I owe you) model. This means that a central entity backs the value of stablecoin with assets, and the issuer promises that you can redeem your investment anytime at a one-to-one exchange rate.

But you may have heard of algorithmic Stablecoins. What are they?

USDT vs. Algorithmic Stablecoins

Algorithmic Stablecoins such as Tron’s USDD or Waves’s USDN keep the exchange rate with trading incentives and the automatic minting and burning of tokens with the help of a twin token to absorb volatility without an outside reserve asset. I’ve run out of breath but I’ll draw another and continue…USDT does not operate that way because Tether, not an algorithm, decides when to burn or mint tokens according to demand. Hope that clears that one up.

USDT vs. DAI

DAI, the Stablecoin of MakerDAO, is also backed by assets in a reserve but it is overcollateralized. This simply means that the reserve holds more assets in the reserve than DAI’s total value and only holds cryptocurrencies such as Ether and USDC. Additionally, MakerDAO does not have a central governing body. Instead, leadership is spread out among holders of the MakerDAO governance token and some find it preferable that it is contrary to Tether’s centralized entity.

USDT vs. USDC

Both Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC are backed by real assets and issued by a centralized entity but there’s a key difference between them. That’s in the composition of reserves. USDC only holds cash and short-term U.S. government bonds. To some then USDC is perceived as a safer and more transparent asset.

To remain impartial we’ll need to take a brief look at both the advantages and disadvantages of USDT. Here we go:

Advantages of USDT

  • Its price is stable. In the case of USDT, its value is 1 USDT equal to 1 $ USD
  • Your transactions are very cheap. So for example, if you send money from one USDT account to another, no fees are charged for that transaction. But if you want to transform USDT for other cryptocurrencies or fiat currencies, you incur a small commission
  • It is a highly integrable currency. USDT is especially easy to integrate into exchange platforms. As a result, virtually all exchange platforms offer pairs to trade
  • It greatly facilitates the task of protecting the funds of traders and traders interested in working with cryptocurrencies. This since it allows to quickly exchange more volatile cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin in a stable cryptocurrency.

Disadvantages of USDT

  • There are doubts about whether the Tether company actually maintains a 1: 1 collateralization between the USDT tokens and their bank reserves. This is because it has never been possible to carry out a complete and public audit of this system. Due to this, back in 2017, USDT faced a difficult situation in which its value had well below the 1: 1 ratio with the dollar, falling to 0.9: 1. Likewise, the Tether company has been involved in several scandals such as the Bitfinex hacking scandal and even the one suffered by Tether itself, both suffering millions in losses
  • Tether is a company with many contradictions. First of all, it offers USDT as a 1: 1 backed cryptocurrency with the dollar, that appears on the main page of its website. However, in the legal and risk terms, it shows that they do not guarantee this claim 100%
  • It is not an anonymous currency. The fact that you have to have to make a bank deposit to create the tokens removes privacy and puts your data in the hands of a company
  • It is a cryptocurrency controlled by Tether, therefore it is not decentralized and its functions depend on this company
  • There is no clarity on its implementation. There is no Github repository on its implementation on the Omni protocol. The only thing known is its smartcontracts on Ethereum and EOS, the rest is not clear

Summary

It’s fair to say that Tether has seen more than its fair share of controversy. It may therefore be welcomed news that as of August 2022 they have partnered with BDO Italia to conduct regular reviews and attestations of its dollar reserves. This time the reserve attestations will be an official verification by a reputable auditing and accounting firm that the reserves claimed to be held in a company’s treasury do, in fact, exist.

As part of its attempt to regain public confidence surrounding its treasury, Tether is looking to now release these public attestation reports on a monthly basis. These updates will include the latest figures on the number of USDT tokens issued along with the company’s reserves.

Now these reports may not have started at this point but in the interests of fairness at least some time has to be afforded to Tether to organise this initiative so I guess a tad of patience may be a prerequisite. 

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Polygon All You Need To Know

How was Polygon founded?

Formerly known as MATIC, the Indian origins Polygon is an Indian blockchain scalability platform referred to as ‘Ethereum’s Internet of Blockchains’. Its goal was to answer to some of the challenges still faced by Ethereum today – such as heavy fees, poor user experience and low transactions per second (TPS). And it aims to create a multi-chain ecosystem of ethereum compatible blockchains. 

As mentioned, originally, the project began as the MATIC Network. Later it was rebranded as Polygon when its scope expanded. It aims to provide distinct blockchains that can freely exchange value and information.

Jaynti Kanani, with Sandeep Nailwal, Mihailo Bjelic and Anurag Arjun founded Matic in 2017 while based in Mumbai. Kanani also collaborated with this team on a variety of other projects so they were more than comfortable with each others skill set and they first developed the vision for Polygon before swiftly moving in early 2018 to develop its complete ecosystem.

At the time, the aftermath of the bear market caused many savvy investors to look out for the next big thing within the crypto space and Polygon may have fitted the bill. Although Polygon seems to have fallen a little under their radar it ranks among the top 15 biggest cryptos globally (currently holding 13th place) and has cettainly become a massive hit in India. A surge in user requests and popularity has led cryptocurrency exchanges like CoinSwitch Kuber to list the currency on their platforms

Why is Polygon so popular?

Although it has already captured a place among the top 15 cryptocurrencies, its founders have ambitious plans to make it the third-largest crypto project following Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Polygon is certainly involved with some of the hottest areas of cryptocurrencies, such as DeFi (Decentralized Finance), DApp (Decentralized Application), DAO’s (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) and NFT’s (Non-Fungible Tokens). 

We can think of Polygon as an express train. Although it’s on the same track as all other trains it moves faster and makes fewer stops along the way. In this analogy, the track is Ethereum, where Polygon does a quicker job of fulfilling transactions than the Ethereum blockchain itself. Polygon is also the name of the native cryptocurrency used on the Polygon network but the coins trade under the MATIC ticker.

The platform uses a proof-of-stake, or POS, consensus to secure the network and create new currency. How about their current figures? Well, Polygon has a market cap of $3.386 billion, and there are a little over 8 billion polygon coins currently in circulating supply.

And right now? At the time of writing, the price of this cryptocurrency is US$0.87 which represents a more than 25,000% increase over its lifetime to date and despite its peaks and troughs the coin has grown over 86% over the past month although when considering the last year it has seen a decline of a little over 13%.

There are several reasons behind the substantial rise of Polygon from inception to current day 2022 including growing seemingly structured hype around Polygon, the Google BigQuery announcement and of course the undisclosed amount invested by US tech billionaire Mark Cuban.

What was the Google BigQuery announcement? In May of 2021 Polygon announced that the Polygon Blockchain Datasets would be integrated into Google BigQuery, enabling the querying and analysis of on-chain data on Polygon in a simple, organized manner using Google Cloud.

The integration of Polygon data into Google’s BigQuery platform will enable developers, data analysts and crypto-enthusiasts to better understand the Polygon Blockchain and derive powerful insights from it. Polygon aims to serve as Ethereum’s Internet of Blockchains, bringing massive scale to Ethereum via the Polygon SDK, supporting stand-alone chains and secured chains. The availability of a fast and scalable data insights platform is critical to Polygon’s growth with Dapps, Enterprises and other Blockchain Solutions, and Google Cloud’s Public Datasets program does just that.

Growing investor interest around MATIC Polygon’s fantastic growth is also partly because of the surge in popularity of the Ethereum network since 2018 and the adoption of its blockchain. Faster and cheaper transactions facilitated by Polygon’s side chain architecture generate a much-anticipated hype in price and public perception. 

Last year on Feb 9th of 2021, MATIC announced its plans to rebrand itself as Polygon in a structured attempt to be recognized on a global scale. At that time, Polygon also upgraded the system by bringing in promising metaverse projects and integrated Matic Plasma Chain. This enabled it to provide a layer one blockchain network with integrated scaling solutions for NFT, DeFi etc. 

Amid increased congestion on the Ethereum Network and its rising costs, Polygon’s astonishingly low fees are gaining real traction. With an increased demand for scalability networks, Polygon could even onboard more projects with ease. 

The growing adoption of Polygon and other similar platforms can boost investors’ overall sentiment in the crypto market. According to LunarCrush, Polygon’s dominance on all the social media platforms has rose by around 636% during Q1 of 2022. This means that investors were taking a more extensive interest in the currency during the start of the year.

How does Polygon Matic work?

Polygon is a platform design to support infrastructure development and help Ethereum scale. Its core component is a modular, flexible framework (Polygon SDK) that allows developers to build and connect Layer-2 infrastructures like Plasma, Optimistic Rollups, zkRollups, Validium and standalone sidechains like the project’s flagship product, Matic POS (Proof-of-Stake). Since rebranding from Matic Network in February 2021 Polygon pivoted towards supporting multiple Layer-2 infrastructure. It will continue to support the Matic POS sidechain and Plasma-based payment system, which currently hosts over 90 applications.

Layer-2 scaling solutions or external networks can act as load balances for networks that have inherently difficulty to scale as user activity increases.

In 2017, Plasma was at the forefront of blockchain scaling, and Matic featured a plasma-driven scaling approach and Proof-of-Stake (PoS) sidechains to assist Ethereum as user demand for the network grew. Over time, Matic POS became a prominent scaling option for various applications.

In this way Polygon became a sort of Swiss Army knife for scaling solutions. Polygon plans to add support for rollups and Validium to its already-existing Plasma/POS chain. The project recognizes that Ethereum may not scale from a single solution in isolation. There’s a possibility that several solutions will co-exist and help scale Ethereum collectively, and Polygon aims to play a central role in supplying the infrastructure necessary to launch any of these systems.

Anyone who has ever traded on the Ethereum blockchain would be familiar with the high transaction fees and slow fulfilment times on the network. Polygon solves these problems by providing a decentralized platform that facilitates low-cost transactions.

The network describes itself as a layer two scaling solution. Its unique transaction fulfillment technology allows up to 65,000 transactions per second on each side chain. The system uses proof-of-stake checkpoints that could, in the future, allow millions of transactions on the blockchain. In addition, Polygon’s side chains have been designed to support decentralized finance protocols within the Ethereum ecosystem.

Currently, Polygon only supports Ethereum as the base chain but plans on extending its support to other base chains, according to community consensus and its suggestions.

Polygon Tokens in Circulation

Polygon developers release the tokens every month. The maximum supply of polygon tokens is 10,000,000,000, and 8 billion, or 80%, are currently in circulation, according to CoinMarketCap. Polygon has burned, or removed from circulation, 650,000 coins since a January upgrade on its mainnet.

What are Polygons tokenomics?

Sixteen percent of the tokens are team tokens; advisors hold 4%, 12% are network tokens and 23.33% are in the ecosystem. The remaining 21.86% are foundation tokens.

How Much Does Polygon Cost?

As of the start of August 2022, Polygon’s price is $0.87 (according to internationally recognized and trusted Coinbase).

Should I Invest In Polygon?

Since the Polygon platform has many uses, the polygon coin has become popular among investors. But if you are a beginner or do not know much about polygon tokens, it is important to be familiar with the project aims and current status before investing in it.

Framework for Blockchain Networks

In the future, Polygon wants to offer a framework for blockchain networks that would allow users to create interconnecting blockchain networks – hence the columned term as the ‘internet of blockchains’.

If this comes to pass, developers will have a beautiful freedom for network creation. They will be able to develop standalone, flexible and scalable blockchains.

Considering Polygon’s ambitious plans, it is quite likely that the currency will be on the rise in the future.

Ethereum Virtual Machine Compatibility

Many developers use the user-friendly Ethereum Virtual Machine to build decentralized apps.

With its EVM compatibility, Polygon makes it easier for developers to create decentralized apps and port them. Developers have deployed many Ethereum apps onto Polygon, including SushiSwap and Aave.

Polygon’s Price Increased 13,000% in 2021

Polygon experienced incredible gains in 2021, increasing 13,000%, from less than 2 cents to $2.68, between January and May of that year. After a brief stumble, Polygon rose again, hitting an all-time high of $2.8768 in December 2021. However, this higher price did not last for long. Polygon, like most popular cryptocurrencies, went into a freefall in late December 2021, and it appears to still be trending downward on the whole but given a smaller, more recent sample slice of time – as of June, polygon was trading for $0.4231 and is at $0.87 as we referred to earlier. This as an example of the market’s volatility and how much respect we need to show to that volatility when investing.

Is It a Safe Investment?

Regardless of the cryptocurrency you want to invest in, it is imperative to note that any of these currencies are volatile investments. You should be comfortable with a dramatic swing in price without going into panic mode running for the hills, complaining to grandma or negative rant blogging.

Where To Buy Polygon

There’s lots of choice when it comes to buying Polygon as it can be found and purchased from several cryptocurrency exchanges, including:

  • Binance
  • BiONE
  • UniSwap
  • WhiteBIT
  • ZebPay
  • Coinbase Pro
  • Huobi Global
  • Hotbit
  • KuCoin
  • Uphold
  • Gate.io
  • BitYard

The advantages of Polygon

As for polygon, some might consider it a safe investment while others do not. For instance, Mark Cuban, the cryptocurrency-enthusiast billionaire, invested in polygon.

Another positive sign is that Polygon is on a hiring spree amid a cryptocurrency bear market that has many companies, including Coinbase and BlockFi, laying off staff. A slew of high-profile partnerships could be part of the reason. The Draft Kings, Dolce & Gabbana, Macy’s, Adidas, Prada, Stripe, Adobe and Meta – in addition to the NFL – all have launched projects on Polygon. Wow! What testimony to the teams’ current efforts. Surely that has to inspire confidence across the board.

In total, more than 7,000 decentralized apps are running on Polygon. The sheer volume of dApps it supports should keep the platform relevant for a very long time to come.

The disadvantages of Polygon

The downside of Polygon is its attachment to Ethereum. The network is not only competing with other currencies but also with Ethereum itself, which it also depends on. Before you invest in polygon, it would be remiss not to determine if it could face any roadblocks in the future. The primary concern for the platform is the presence of other blockchain network projects, like Avalanche and Polkadot.

These projects may start coexisting in the coming years, leaving no room for Polygon to be hyped up. Moreover, Ethereum is making efforts to upgrade its platform. That upgrade – initially called Ethereum 2.0 and now referred to as The Merge – will result in a transition from the current proof-of-work chain to the new proof-of-stake chain. Once the merge is complete, it could lower Polygon’s popularity although it has to be said that it is extremely doubtful that the merge will result in such a significant impact to compete with what Polygon offers, the potential value it creates, the opportunities it will continue to develop for Ethereum as a network and the general investment sentiment toward the Polygon platform. 

Polygon developers would of course refute this siting their network will remain relevant even when Ethereum 2.0/The Merge comes to fruition because Polygon offers speedier transactions and still allows Ethereum’s communication with other networks.

Perhaps therefore they should hope that another programmable blockchain does not take Ethereum’s spot in the future, sending Polygon down with it. 

Is Polygon a Good Long-Term Investment?

Polygon is just as volatile as you would expect any other cryptocurrency to be. Its developers might have bigger plans for the future, but there is no way to ensure that other blockchain networks or Ethereum itself would not cause a decline in the coin’s popularity and worth. Besides that, the coin has been unable to sustain its brief rallies so far this year, which means the price might still be falling. There is a flip side to that coin however, reflecting on the yearly decrease of 13% but the lifetime increase of 25,000% could either tell us the bigger picture or the current trend.

If you want to invest in this, as any cryptocurrency/ project make sure you follow the staple and golden rule of investment by not putting in more than you can afford to lose.

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All You Need To Know About Uniswap

How was Uniswap Created?

Uniswap was created in November 2018 by Hayden Adams, who had been a mechanical engineer at the German corporation Siemens. He wanted to create a decentralised, deregulated exchange ( a DEX) that did not require users to make a deposit before using it nor open an account and provide sensitive, personal information.

Uniswap’s reliance on mathematical models and liquidity pools rather than last trade prices and order books such as those used by Bitcoin has proven very successful and it has in turn received financial backing from large venture capital firms.

Uniswap is a decentralized finance protocol that’s used to exchange cryptocurrencies. It is also the name of the company that built the Uniswap protocol. The protocol facilitates automated transactions between cryptocurrency tokens on the Ethereum blockchain using smart contracts.

Hayden Adams initial version was published to the Ethereum mainnet on November 2nd 2018. The protocol was launched on the last day of the Devcon 4 conference and it quickly gained a lot of traction, resulting in an initial seed investment to fund work on the second version. Uniswap V2 was launched in May 2020, and in September the new crypto token called UNI was launched.

How does Uniswap work?

Uniswap runs on two smart contracts simultaneously, an ‘Exchange’ contract and a ‘Factory’ contract. These are essentially a sort of automatic computer program designed to perform specific functions when certain conditions are met.  In other words, it could be described as an automated liquidity protocol.

Better known in the space as as an automated market maker (AMM). A decentralized exchange is one that doesn’t have a central authority managing orders. AMMs accomplish this by using smart contracts (programs written on the blockchain) to set prices and execute trades. In doing so, they’re able to offer decentralized financial services otherwise known as DeFi services.

What are AMMs?

AMMs like Uniswap can provide crypto trading because of their liquidity pools. A liquidity pool is a pool of crypto funds, contributed by users, locked in a smart contract. Funds from the liquidity pool are used when people want to trade crypto.

Uniswap takes a small fee from every transaction and distributes it among a pool’s liquidity providers (the people who have deposited their crypto into the pool). It’s a mutually beneficial relationship. Uniswap is able to offer crypto trading because of its liquidity providers. The liquidity providers earn crypto because they receive a cut of the exchange’s transaction fees – so you can see the protocols’ appeal a the outset.

It is powered by a system of non-upgradeable smart contracts, on the Ethereum blockchain. Uniswap is open-source software licensed and each smart contract manages a liquidity pool comprising two ERC-20 tokens (a type of token in Ethereum).

What are the constituents of Uniswap?

As the native token of the Uniswap decentralized exchange, UNI is the token that powers the DEX. It is awarded to investors who stake their assets, and also acts as a governance token.

A governance token effectively gives holders voting rights on issues concerning the DEX. This allows owners of UNI to participate in decisions on how the network operates and benefit from the rising value of decentralized exchanges over time. You could say in some sense that the more you own the more you get. For example; UNI holders who hold 1% or more of the total UNI supply even have the opportunity to submit development proposals. In essence, the value of UNI tokens correlates with the inherent value investors receive with the Uniswap exchange. Perhaps a posh and lateral way of saying that you get what you pay for. Or at least more of a say.

What makes Uniswap popular?

Uniswap is unlike other cryptos because, technically, it is more of an exchange platform more than a standalone crytpo. UNI can be held and traded but its main use is as a liquid intermediate asset in exchange transactions.

With a market capitalisation of around US$5.1 billion, Uniswap is currently in the ‘top 20 most valuable’ digital asset class. Currently, there are circa 746 million UNI coins in circulation and the maximum supply of UNI coins are capped at 1 billion so there’s clearly an appeal amongst the masses.

Following broader crypto trends, the UNI price rose sharply at the beginning of 2021 and touched a record high of $45.02 in May of 2021. Since then prices have declined drastically by around 85% with its current trading position as of August 2022 at sub $7.

Most traders, however, are still quite bullish on the prospects of Uniswap with some maintaining that the price will surge to as high as US$80 in the next five years. Overly optimistic? Well, maybe but it is a developing protocol and sits within the current market that is witnessing a severely bearish sentiment on the whole.

Decentralized exchanges have come under severe scrutiny by regulators, who are gunning to enforce regulations, centralization, and ultimately, the demise of DEX. Whether the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or any regulatory body cracks down (or at least successfully) on Uniswap or any of its peers in a meaningful way remains to be seen. Naturally, if the Uniswap DEX comes under attack, the token’s price will plummet, leading to substantial investment losses.

Uniswap compared to Ethereum

The use cases, market caps and so on, are of course very different when making this almost misplaced comparison. However, the one similarity between ETH, Ethereum’s native token, and the UNI token are that both operate on Ethereum’s blockchain architecture.

However, ETH operates on Layer 1, while UNI operates on Layer 2; Layer 1 network referring to a blockchain, while a Layer-2 protocol is a third-party integration that can be used in conjunction with said Layer-1 blockchain. As a solution, developers create Layer-2 protocols that rely on the Layer-1 network for consensus and security.

ERC20 is a standard used for creating and issuing smart contracts on the Ethereum blockchain. The majority of tokens on Ethereum’s Layer 2 are in fact, ERC20 tokens. That’s why unfortunately users of Uniswap DEX need to pay gas fees with ETH to some frustration. But at least the frustration is expected with any Ethereum based transaction. 

Uniswap can be found on major world wide exchanges. This is considered by some to be of critical importance since the exchanges are trusted by millions of us who buy, sell, and hold digital assets long-term.

The Uniswap exchange doesn’t require more government-issued cards for ID purposes and due to its decentralized nature, the process that an exchange takes known as ‘Know Your Customer’ is nonexistent. This means that as long as you have money you are ready to purchase and sell ERC20 tokens. In centralized exchanges some ID verification can take several hours or several days to complete so its appeal is somewhat limited should an investor wish to move quickly.

Uniswap unveiled another upgrade to stay on top of DeFi in May of 2021. Uniswap say that the goal is to make Uniswap the most flexible and efficient automated market maker ever designed. The features of the automated market maker are unique with Uniswap and like others such as Sushiswap and 1 Inch runs on the network as an ERC20 token and enables the exchange of Ethereum-based assets for several crypto natives.

Uniswap underwent an extensive review on the dev community in the finance space. The conclusion was a that it has secured smart contract coding and is a non-custodial platform that gives the users control over their wallets and private keys. Not a bad review!

Decentralization is the hallmark of the crypto finance space as millions of people are drawn to its offerings as there are no intermediaries so control is in the hands of the community. A refreshing alternative to greedy intermediaries.

Uniswap Competition

Uniswap faces competition from other DEXs on Ethereum like SushiSwap, Curve, and more. Such as the arrival of Internet Computer (ICP) – a set of protocols that allow independent data centers around the world to band together and offer a decentralized alternative to the current centralized internet cloud providers – essentially decentralising the internet.

Should I invest in Uniswap?

As ever we do not provide financial advice. However investors with a crypto wallet who want to swap tokens or earn interest with liquidity mining should find UNI to be a viable option as a service or as an addition to their portfolio. 

But as with so many things in life to every Yin there must be a Yang. With that in mind what are the Pros and Cons of Uniswap?

The advantages of Uniswap

  • Swap ERC-20 tokens
  • User-friendly design
  • Earn crypto with liquidity mining
  • No registration required, no KYC
  • Crypto wallet support

The disadvantages of Uniswap

  • Doesn’t accept fiat money
  • Gas fees
  • Risk of impermanent loss
  • No KYC

Summary

As always we should educate ourselves about an asset before investing and that includes thinking about what you can do with your UNI token. You can choose the add liquidity option to lend crypto to any liquidity pools with the UNI token option.

Be aware that investing in any asset including crypto is not without its risks and FunganomicsÂŽ certainly do not claim to provide financial advice within this article. Investors should approach these assets like any other technological investment, with a long-term mindset and to expect the volatility of ups and downs.

Although the current UNI price may be low perhaps that presents us with the right opportunity given its development, adoption and market potential.