Startups that are powered by blockchain technology are on the rise, and they are worth watching out for in the years to come.
Blockchain technology is gaining more and more popularity with each passing day. In just a few years, blockchain has transformed from an unheard-of technology into a buzzword that is being applied to everything, such as supply chains and cybersecurity. Many startups are harnessing the power of blockchain to address unique needs in their respective industries.
While many are now vying for a piece of the blockchain pie, here are five startups powered by blockchain technology that are worth watching in 2022.
Polygon
Formerly known as Matic Network, Polygon was founded in 2017 by Jaynti Kanani, Sandeep Nailwal and Anurag Arjin. Polygon is a Layer 2 network built on Ethereum, a Layer 1 blockchain, and addresses pressing scalability issues, such as high gas fees and slow speeds. It aims to enhance Ethereum’s productivity and effectiveness with its Layer 2 technology. Polygon processes transactions on Ethereum-compatible sidechains and posts them back on the Ethereum main chain. This has eased transaction congestion on Ethereum and lowered the gas fee. Besides, as it serves as an open framework, anyone can create their own Ethereum-compatible application without having any technical knowledge or experience in coding.
Recently, the company announced plans to go completely carbon-neutral by 2022 and has pledged US$20 million dollars towards offsetting its own footprint while also eventually becoming negative on emissions. Prior to this, the startup has secured US$450 million from some of the most prominent venture capitalists, including Galaxy Digital, Galaxy Interactive, Tiger Global and Republic Capital.
Mintable
Founded in 2018, Mintable is an easy-to-use blockchain platform that allows users to create, distribute and trade digital files on the Ethereum network through non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Users can mint or trade a vast array of NFT categories, like images, musical tracks, videos and novels/books. Recently, the startup has also added new features intended to make it easier for experienced NFT traders and newcomers alike to do research on an NFT project. “We want to make sure that we are pushing the NFT space forward with these progressive features that we think are a requirement for the NFT space,” said Zach Burks, Founder and CEO of Mintable.
With its global headquarters in Singapore, Mintable is backed by leading investors and partners, including Mastercard, Ripple Labs, billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban, and co-Founder of cloud computing company Salesforce Marc Benioff. In July 2021, Mintable raised US$13 million in a Series A funding round.
CoinDCX
Founded in 2018, CoinDCX is India’s top liquidity aggregator that has instant deposit and withdrawal facilities. The startup uses the crypto wallet Bitgo, which is now available for blockchain trading. Since its launch, CoinDCX has more than 10 million active users on its platform. In March this year, CoinDCX launched a new crypto investment plan that will enable investors to invest fixed amounts of money at regular intervals. With this new feature, CoinDCX is looking to help its users build a habit of making long-term and disciplined investments. As of April this year, they already have more than 100,000 users using the feature.
CoinDCX is clear about not offering other investment options, such as stocks and mutual funds, and remains focused on cryptocurrency for now. “As a company, we are excited about a category that is the future. We will continue to double down on crypto and not explore areas that are already solved,” said the CoinDCX founder. Further, the company is planning on increasing its workforce to over 1,000 people this year alone.
In 2021, CoinDCX became India’s first cryptocurrency exchange to achieve unicorn status amid regulatory uncertainty over crypto assets in India. In March 2022, CoinDCX raised US$135 million in a Series C funding round at the valuation of US$2 billion. The crypto exchange is exploring the chance to build a venture firm as well as pushing for the growth of Web3.0 in India.
MoonPay
Crypto payment service company MoonPay was launched in 2019 by Ivan Soto-Wright and Victor Faramond. Within the span of three years, the startup has risen to popularity. Many celebrities, including Post Malone, used the app to buy NFTs from the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection for its convenience.
MoonPay enables users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies with different methods, like debit/credit cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. “The firm aims to make crypto accessible to the masses in the same way that video-conferencing tools like Zoom made it easier to make calls over the internet,” said Soto-Wright.
Last month, the startup onboarded more than 60 celebrities, such as Justin Bieber, Snoop Dogg, Gwyneth Paltrow, Post Malone, Ashton Kutcher and many more. That infused US$87 million into a funding round led by Tiger Global and Coatue, giving the company a valuation of US$3.4 billion. “We have aspirations eventually to be a public company,” said Soto-Wright. Going forward, the firm plans to utilize the raised funds on new products and expansion.
ConsenSys
Founded in 2015, ConsenSys is a Brooklyn-based company that specializes in cryptocurrency and decentralized protocols. They are involved in different blockchain projects and applications, such as the creation of crypto wallet MetaMask. It also helps companies launch modern financial infrastructures while giving people everywhere the ability to use decentralized web services, like cloud storage platforms, without having any single point of custody for sensitive data.
Recently, the firm raised US$450 million through its Series D funding, bringing ConsenSys valuation to over US$7 billion. The company plans to use funds for the expansion of MetaMask and to hire talent across the globe. “Funding is supporting the rapid expansion of MetaMask with a major redesign scheduled for release later in 2022, as well as the roll-out of a plug-in extensibility system that will allow integration with a wide variety of blockchain protocols and account security schemes,” said Joseph Lubin, Founder and CEO of ConsenSys. “We are recruiting talents all over the world, including in India. Only in March 2022, we hired 70 new talents bringing ConsenSys employees number to 776,” he added further.
While it’s impossible to know exactly what will happen over the next few years, all of these startups have the potential to make a big impact in the blockchain and cryptocurrency industries. If you want to stay ahead of the curve, keep an eye on these startups as they continue to grow and innovate over the next few years.
Also Read:
- Everything You Need to Know About Bitcoin
- Is Blockchain the Future of Real Estate?
- How Can You Launch a Cryptocurrency Startup?
- Blockchain in 2021 And Beyond
- Why Is Bitcoin Price So Volatile and Will It Ever Be Stable?
- MetaMask or Coinbase – Which Is the Better Wallet for You?
Header image courtesy of Unsplash
