Landscape of Emerging Metaverse Crypto Finances

The metaverse – whatever ultimately that concept means for any individual or organization – has been gaining in speed and development in recent months on an almost unprecedented level. It has seen a huge influx of anything from brands to individual artists, influencers, celebrities, and creators. The virtual universe that should be the metaverse should allow its users to shop, participate in events, interact with other people and so much more, all through the form of their digital avatar. With all of these possibilities and options on the table, at least in theory, it is no surprise that the traction for financial systems inside of that space is also expanding rapidly.

That means a growing virtual economy that is both functional and becoming more and more interconnected. With it, people can go shopping, buy plots of land, support their favorite creators, and so much more in terms of financial metaverse dealings. Cryptocurrencies are already playing a big role in the same process and their status is almost guaranteed in the coming years. That is why many experts do not know how the metaverse will grow exactly, but they are certain that cryptos like bitcoin will be the backbone of its economy. Right now, however, the picture is nowhere near clear-cut and instead offers a disconnected series of islands that should one day blend into the wider seamless experience of the metaverse.

Basic Step of Crypto Wallets

The key and first step in any of the upcoming alternatives is also the most basic one – users need to have access to their digital wallets. Some platforms, like Decetralland and Sandbox, demand that their users have a cryptocurrency wallet ready and set up before they can create an account. Those are usually wallets that are rigged for the ethereum network and thus MetaMask is the most popular option. It uses the browser plugin on a computer to set up an offline/online wallet which the users can employ for a range of alternative tokens.

These begin with ETH, naturally, but branch off to any token that uses the ethereum network as its basic core. For example, many gaming and esports tokens in use today are all built on top of the ETH and its smart contract features. But, the trick is that these wallets also need to be somehow connected to companies that are tied with the traditional banking or fintech sector. That way users can employ their debit and credit cards, but also PayPal accounts, for example, to send fiat funds into a token that will end up on their digital wallet and be used further down the line in some corner of the metaverse.

Established Cryptocurrencies

The use of digital money in the metaverse is not just natural but entirely expected. Because of that, anyone holding established digital currencies, like bitcoin’s BTC tokens, but also alternative coins of all shapes and sizes will find that they can spend them in the metaverse. Some of their wallets, like those belonging to big traditional fintech companies, might now work directly in the metaverse at first.

However, it is already clear that companies like Binance, Coinbase, and many other exchanges are frantically working on introducing their APIs to the same digital space. But, even without these, the process of using BTC, ETH, or anything else in the metaverse simply includes making an intermediary digital wallet and then putting it to use in the virtual space.

NFT Collectibles

Probably the dominant element of the metaverse concept, non-fungible tokens have been in a massive state of expansion for more than a year. While the technology of blockchain for non-interchangeable pieces of data has been around since Layer 2 networks, it gained tracking when it began gaining fiat investments on a massive scale. In 2021, companies like Visa and Budweiser brewery decided to buy their own corporate NFTs and pay tens of thousands of USD for these. These too belong in crypto wallets like any other digital currency, but come with a separate financial and investment ecosystem.

That can turn obscure artists instantly profitable to an insane level or use old and forgotten franchises to build popular NFT projects. But, the pitfalls of the same space are even bigger and regularly see individuals waste money not only on trivial art that will never manage to be successful but also on outright scams. However, for better or worse, the NFT domain has now captured the imagination of the public, where even those who dislike it continue to unconsciously promote it through their social media. That, in many ways, mimics how digital currencies began first to generate popularity in the early 2010s.

Custom Metaverse Tokens

The projects that are set in the individual or shared elements of the metaverse also generally come with their own tokens. Not having these would be an unwise business decision, so all companies which are building the metaverse are also doing it on their own blockchains.

Here, the same tokens can be used for the purchase of digital plots of land in those metaverse corners, as well as investing them, staking, farming and so much more. All of that is basically limited only by the tech capacity of the developers and their willingness to move into other fields of crypto-economics. However, anything is possible with a custom token and its blockchain network, so it makes no sense not to build it.

Business Opportunities

There is a general consensus that because of the numerous business opportunities that the metaverse concept offers, there will be no need to especially usher custom finances. Instead, they will grow naturally like in many other domains of crypto and blockchain. The path and intensity of that growth is anyone’s guess, but the potential is clearly there and will manifest itself with the influx of users.

For now, the challenge is not to build the financial layer of the metaverse, but to build this space itself. More importantly, an even bigger huddle lies in finding out how these open and closed parts of the metaverse can work together – or intentionally fail to do so.