Original author: James Wo, Founder CEO, Digital Finance Group

In the past few years, the blockchain and Web3 fields have made significant technological progress in scaling solutions, cross-chain interoperability, DeFi, NFT, and ERC-404. DFG strategically invests in various protocols, infrastructure and ecology. The Ethereum ecosystem is the most mature, so DFG pays special attention to the Ethereum ecosystem. ETHDenver 2023 attracted an impressive 30,000 attendees, setting a new record. This year’s ETHDenver is expected to bring together more than 20,000 community members to share ideas, innovate, and shape the future of blockchain technology.

ETHDenver has always been a center of innovation and creativity, promoting the integration of blockchain technology, culture and education. In addition to showcasing technological advancements, ETHDenver fosters a sense of community and collaboration among participants. ETHDenver is a must-attend event that is both enriching and inspiring. DFG is a sponsor of this year’s ETHDenver and is the organizer and sponsor of several side events during ETHDenver. I’m excited to be in Denver on February 25th during BUIDLWeek for the conference, and eagerly await this year’s ETHDenver gathering.

I’m excited about upcoming innovations designed to improve Ethereum’s scalability, privacy, and overall utility, and I believe rollups, along with the implementation of EIP 4884, are expected to bring significant improvements to second-layer rollup scalability. I also look forward to the advancement of DID, DeFi, DAOs, and hybrid applications. These areas mark key developments that will advance the Ethereum ecosystem, highlighting the importance of privacy and Ethereum’s diversity as a payment method and DApp governance platform.

Decentralization, open participation, censorship resistance, and trusted neutrality are the foundational principles of Ethereum. Technologies like rollups, zero-knowledge proofs, account abstraction, and privacy solutions can help enforce these core values ​​in Ethereum. I anticipate that Ethereum’s technology will be used more broadly to enable secure and private online interactions and to promote more democratic forms of governance.

Ethereum is a vast ecosystem that supports a wide range of applications. The emphasis on scalability, privacy, and decentralized governance highlights the ongoing efforts to realize Ethereum’s full potential as a decentralized platform for a new era of digital interaction and collaboration.

DFG has been investing in protocols, infrastructure and laying out ecological projects in 2023, such as DeFi, games, and NFTs. In 2024, infrastructure and ecology are expected to undergo significant evolution and growth. Here are my expectations in these areas:

DeFi

• Regulation and Transparency: 2024 will likely see a focus on compliance and regulatory clarity, particularly affecting HyFi projects. True DeFi projects will likely remain outside regulatory boundaries, but U.S. regulators are expected to crack down on HyFi.

• Stablecoin Transaction Volume: Forecasts indicate that on-chain stablecoin transaction volume may exceed Visa’s transaction volume, indicating an ongoing shift to blockchain-based approaches to financial transactions.

• Ethereum and transaction flow: The proportion of ETH pledged for liquidity is expected to increase, thereby enhancing the liquidity and utility of the Ethereum ecosystem. Additionally, private transaction growth and the popularity of gasless transactions are expected to rise, and a significant increase in the number of layer-1 transactions for rollup is also expected.

Web3 games

• Enhanced blockchain integration: Expect more sophisticated use of blockchain elements in game mechanics and the launch of a more diverse range of Web3 games in different genres. This year is also likely to see more collaborations between traditional gaming industry players and Web3 startups. ERC-404 has the potential to revolutionize how in-game assets are owned, traded, and integrated across different games and platforms. Additionally, the interoperability facilitated by ERC-404 has the potential to make gaming universes more connected and unified, allowing assets in one game to be leveraged or recognized in another, thereby enriching the overall gaming experience.

• Challenges to mainstream adoption: Attracting a larger player base remains a challenge, but improving developer tools to integrate Web3 elements and make blockchain components more intuitive may drive wider adoption. ERC-404 fragments NFT ownership, which lowers the threshold for players to acquire and trade high-value in-game items, potentially leading to a more active and liquid in-game economy.

NFT

• Growth and Diversification: NFTs are expected to be a major driver of Web3 adoption in 2024, but successful projects may differ significantly from current trends. The focus may shift to unique applications and broader digital ecosystem integration.

• Liquidity and Accessibility: ERC-404 enables NFTs to be traded on DEXs as fungible tokens while retaining their unique identity. This hybrid approach aims to solve some of the core issues facing the NFT market by increasing liquidity and accessibility. By solving liquidity issues and enabling fragmented ownership, the ERC-404 standard has the potential to appeal to a wider NFT market audience, including collectors and investors.

In 2024, the Web3 space is expected to demonstrate deeper integration, maturity, and adaptation to regulation. We can expect interconnectivity between chains and ecosystems, coupled with developments in the gaming and NFT sectors, to drive this year towards significant maturity and mainstream breakthroughs. Looking forward to seeing you all in Denver!

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About DFG

Digital Finance Group (DFG) is a global blockchain and cryptocurrency investment company founded in 2015 with over $1 billion in funds under management. The investment field widely covers multiple tracks of the blockchain ecosystem, such as Web3.0, CeFi, DeFi, NFT, and Polkadot ecosystem.

Investments include Circle, Ledger, Coinlist, FV Bank, Astar, ChainSafe and more than 100 others. DFG aims to create value through analytical research based on the most influential and promising global blockchain and Web3.0 projects that will bring about fundamental changes in the world.

DFG Website: https://dfg.group

DFG Twitter: @DFG__Official

DFG LinkedIn: DFG