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Blockchain metaverse startups: Unparalleled investment potential
Think of how important the Internet is to our daily lives today – this could become the metaverse in much less time than the Internet has taken.
Popular science-fiction author Neal Stephenson coined the term “metaverse” in his first bestseller and groundbreaking 1992 novel, Snow Crash. Today, the concept is becoming reality and, what’s more, it’s possible to invest in metavers. In Ready Player One, the OASIS is another example of advanced virtual reality.
Many other science fiction authors, such as Ian M. Banks, have developed and used similar concepts in their novels.
Back in September, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed his interest in the development of the metaverse. In a recent conference call, Facebook made it clear that it wanted to bring communities, creators and e-commerce together in the metaverse, saying Zuckerberg:
“Our main goal with all of these initiatives is to help bring the metaverse to life,” he said.
Last week, Facebook renamed itself Meta and announced its intention to develop the “metaverse”.
How big could metaverses become?
There are already many well-known names making big money in this field, such as Roblox and Fortnite. These are complete virtual reality worlds in which users exist through avatars.
Slightly lesser-known examples of virtual realities are Decentraland, Upland and Sandbox, as well as Victoria VR, another soon-to-be-launched platform.
From an investment point of view, we can safely say that this explosion in virtual reality and metaversions is comparable to the dot-com boom of the late 1990s. What we’re witnessing now is the next phase of the Internet, in which metavers will overtake and perhaps replace the Internet in its current form.
Already, some companies in this space, like Fortnite, could continue to grow until they are comfortable alongside Facebook, Google, Amazon and other tech giants.
Epic Games, the makers of Fortnite, recently raised $1 billion, with Sony contributing $200 million in the funding round. Facebook is spending a lot of resources and money on a new workspace and proto-metaphysical VR platform known as Horizon.
Brands are also betting heavily on virtual reality. Some are already selling products directly to avatars (D2A), or Gucci is selling a virtual bag that costs more than a real bag. Nike sells virtual Jordans in Fortnite, and Coca-Cola has started selling virtual clothing in Decentraland.
Bloomberg estimates the size of the metaversen market at $800 billion. Although still in its infancy, savvy crypto-investors can contribute to Metaversen’s growth by trading the tokens of fast-growing startups.
That’s why many savvy investors are betting that the virtual reality boom will accelerate even further. That one day – perhaps within the next five years – there will be a virtual reality platform capable of rivaling the big social networks.
How can you invest in metaverses?
Cryptocurrencies are already part of these virtual realities, as various platforms accept cryptocurrencies as a payment option for virtual goods, including VR-based real estate. Players of Decentraland and The Sandbox can create virtual businesses such as casinos and theme parks and then monetize them.
As for cryptocurrency investors looking to capitalize on this trend, some of the work is already done. Matthew Ball, futurist and founder of Roundhill Investments, and Jacob Navok, CEO of Genvid Technologies, recently registered this Metaverse ETF.
Metaverse ETF is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that operates in a similar way to an equity market, with the exception of crypto-based investments in Metaverse companies.
It is a collection of investments in a series of companies – known as an index – that gives investors access to a broad segment of the Metaverse market.
Currently, the Metaverse ETF has an average market capitalization of $74 billion, with investments spread across 41 companies (holdings) in eight countries.
These include investments in infrastructure companies such as Cloudflare and Nvidia, game engines such as Unity and Roblox, and Metaverse content pioneers such as Tencent, Sea and Snap.
Since this index is sold through the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), it only includes public companies and not private companies. This means that crypto and other investors will have to look elsewhere to get something closer to the stock if you are looking to make an early-stage investment.
For early-stage investing, the best options are in the crypto space. Companies that create games, hardware, and content will launch Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) and Initial DEX Offerings (IDOs), which means investors can get on board long before these companies are listed.
If we consider the total addressable size of this market – and include key growth segments such as developers, hardware, advertising and e-commerce – it could be worth over $1,000 billion.
What’s more, considering the importance of the Internet in its current form to everyday life, the metaverse could become such a market in much less time.
As an investment opportunity, metaverse companies, especially those in the ICO and IDO phase, are unrivalled in terms of upside potential, provided of course you choose wisely.
We are witnessing and participating in something exciting. The Internet and the way we experience reality will never be the same again, as the accelerating expansion of metaverses and virtual realities offers many advantages.