As 2021 is coming to an end, the crypto and blockchain industry is looking back at a remarkable year. From securing greater public support to taking blockchain concepts such as DeFi and NFT to the mainstream, 2021 has certainly been a remarkable year for the industry. With 2022 fast approaching, there are already some promising projects that will likely take center stage in the new year and make headlines.
From NFT projects to agencies, here are the top crypto and blockchain projects for 2022:
PhotoChromic
As we move into the era of Web3 and the Metaverse, online identity (and control over it) is becoming as important as the offline one and naturally, blockchain is playing a part. Take PhotoChromic, which introduces a unique use case for NFTs by integrating them with user identity to develop a biomimetically managed model of Self-Sovereign Identity on the Blockchain. Using NFTs, PhotoChromic aims to make identity programmable, verifiable, universally addressable and digitally secured.
Powered by an ERC-20 token, $PHCR, running on the Ethereum blockchain, PhotoChromic addresses the current challenges faced by people the world over, as they pursue ownership over, and the ability to secure, their identity. PhotoChromic gives control and ownership of user identity back to the individual, where it belongs.
CryptoPunks
If you've come across pixelated cartoon images as NFTs on the internet, chances are they are from or were inspired by the CryptoPunks collection. First launched in 2017, CryptoPunks is a collection of 10,000 NFTs that are credited with triggering the wave of NFTs in the last two years.
Due to their nature (they are widely considered the inspiration for the ERC-21 standard) and their rarity, they have sold for record amounts as the supply has dwindled. Given that they are still selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars in late 2021, they will likely retain their popularity in 2022.
Phemex
While blockchain and crypto are global concepts, there are a number of promising projects focused on a specific region. Within Singapore, Phemex has come to dominate the crypto trading sector in just two years of its existence, securing over 1.5 million users in that timeframe. This is thanks to its plethora of trading options, including 40 spot pairs and 39 contract pairs.
The company is also well-known for its viral campaigns, including a 2019 "The Era of Zero" campaign that introduced zero-fee trading for spot orders and a 2020 one to find the original 'Bitcoin Pizza Guy'. In 2022, Phemex's popularity is only going to grow and we can expect more innovative trading and viral campaigns moving forward.
AIOZ Network
In 2020, we are going to see more leveraging of blockchain applications on the emerging Web3 landscape. This will be thanks to projects like AIOZ Network, a web 3.0 Media Infrastructure. AIOZ Network's decentralized content delivery network, powered by peer-to-peer edge nodes, is optimized with artificial intelligence to deliver optimal performance. These features make it blockchain infrastructure usable by decentralized applications for Video, Audio, Live, and Metaverse Streaming.
As a layer-one blockchain network, AIOZ Network is Cosmos IBC Ready, EVM compatible, and uses a delegated Byzantine Fault Tolerant (dBFT) algorithm to achieve consensus. Its mainnet, which will support high transaction throughput and AIOZ smart contracts, will soon launch.
Flare Finance
The decentralized finance (DeFi) space is evolving at a rapid pace, but the need for a solution that can bring all the ecosystems together has yet been not met. Flare Finance which will be the first DeFi platform on the Flare Network could soon become a DeFi platform providing a comprehensive DeFi solution. With seven different products, Flare Finance will enable numerous assets to become part of the ecosystem.
F-Assets and Y-Assets that become part of the Flare Finance ecosystem will bring communities together and deliver the power of finance back to the people. Flare Finance's Experimental Finance (ExFi) platform V2 is live on the Songbird Network and already has over $30 million in TVL with only 3/7 products live on the platform. A clear sign of what is to come once Flare Finance goes live on the Flare Network!
Scallop
As cryptocurrency use is becoming more of a reality for many of us, more services like Scallop are emerging to make the transition smoother. Scallop is a next-gen banking platform with 10 products, including banking, accounts, wallets and an NFT Marketplace. Scallop is one-stop solution for banking and crypto services. With full banking accounts for fiat, wallets for cryptocurrency and an in-built exchange, Scallop makes any type of transaction possible.
Scallop also has a native Blockchain which will launch in the next few months and overlay its banking ecosystem. The Scallop App is set to launch on the 29th of November across Europe.
SpaceY
These days, blockchain projects have made their way into the gaming sector as well. Take SpaceY 2025, the first play-to-earn 3A tower defense blockchain game based on colonizing and defending Mars with a background story based on Elon Musk's Mars mission. A fan favorite since its launch, It is being developed by the BlockFish team, which was behind such blockchain and gaming offerings like Tencent & EA Studio as well as games like Roblox, Death Stranding, and The Sims 3. The gaming industry is already worth billions globally and these days, blockchain is becoming a bigger slice of that pie.
SpaceY 2025 has not only excited many influencers, players and community fans worldwide, but also high-profile investors like Ash WSB, Draper Dragon, Formless Capital, Huobi Ventures and Magnus Capital. The 3D Metaverse sandbox game raised a total of $ 21 million in tokens and equity in its recent series A round. As BlockFish's first 3A flagship game, SpaceY 2025 could lead the next wave of chain game development in 2022 and beyond.
X10 agency
As more and more projects are being launched in the more mature blockchain and crypto industry, there is much more order and professionalism around product launches and this is thanks to agencies like X10 agency.
X10 is a marketing and PR agency that specializes in helping entrepreneurs launch DeFi, STO, NFT, and crypto projects. The company also works to produce reports and forecasts of trends in the industry. So much of the crypto and blockchain industry runs on speculation of the next big thing and X10 works to produce verifiable and practical reports on industry trends.
Liquidify
One interesting development within the crypto industry has been more specific niches popping up and more offerings also popping up to accommodate them. Liquidify is a novel protocol designed to benefit a large but often underappreciated group of users: HODLers (people who hold cryptocurrencies). Liquidify allows crypto HODLers to place their beloved crypto assets as collateral in the Liquidify asset pool. In return, they receive LAT and LFY tokens.
The collateralized assets are still owned by the user! They can be exchanged back at any time at the original exchange rate. This means that protocol users effectively double their profit potential while reducing the risk of their original assets falling in price - a very proven and safe principle for increasing HODLers' profits!
Sushiverse
If there is any part of the blockchain industry that has taken off, it has been non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and blockchain gaming. Sushiverse brings all these together as a blockchain-based online game that makes use of virtual sushi characters to engage in combat and competitions.
All the sushis in the Sushiverse ecosystem are unique NFTs which can increase in value as they win competitions. The idea of in-game assets increasing in value is not new but Sushiverse takes this further by issuing all of them as NFTs. Since it has launched, Sushiverse has secured thousands of users, launched a limited edition collection with renowned digital artists Laya Mathikshara and from all indications, will see even more growth in 2021.
MONCCO PR
One sign of the blockchain and crypto industry's growth is the emergence of PR agencies that cater to it. One of these is MONCCO PR, a Berlin-based PR agency that has been garnering publicity for blockchain and crypto projects for years. Among some of the agency's services are press releases, interviews, reputation management, and publications.
However, the agency is far from generic, crafting custom start-to-finish strategies for their clients and tailoring them to their specific industry. Given how many new crypto and blockchain projects are launching now and will launch in 2022, we're likely to see MONCCO PR remain on our radars.
Shark Hunter BTC
While many more people are trading cryptos than ever before, the way they do so is always changing. Take SharkHunterBTC, which is AI automatic trading bot for altcoins. Unlike manual trading, SharkHunterBTC does not use any indicators but instead, works with an AI to trade on the BTC and USDT channels.
This means that users can have their trades completed automatically at profitable times and earn a profit from their tokens without having to do anything ( no constantly checking token prices and scrambling to buy and sell). This sort of innovation will likely take off in 2022 when even more people enter the market to trade with ease.
2021 was an impressive year for the crypto and blockchain sector and 2022 is shaping up to follow in the same vein. We can expect the industry to follow up its amazing year with even more projects building on its current trajectory.
The aforementioned projects are likely to lead the way in these developments, from connecting crypto lovers to furthering causes with the industry.
