Cryptocurrency vs. Internet Adoption

A visual comparison between charts of the adoption rate of the internet and cryptocurrency

Over the past five years, the number of cryptocurrency users has grown exponentially: from 5 million in 2016 to 106 million in early 2021, and up to 221 million in July, 2021. Three important factors have accompanied this growth:

• Building intuitive and straightforward solutions for users’ first interactions with cryptocurrency. This doesn’t even include other cryptocurrency financial products or mobile apps! In 2016, it was hard to find a service with a simple interface for buying and storing cryptocurrencies (such as Binance or Cash.app).

• The expansion of the range of cryptocurrency services. Completely new ecosystem solutions (Solana, Polkadot, Polygon, etc.), cryptocurrency loans, deposits, storage services, and decentralized exchanges appeared in these five years. The landscape of centralized exchanges changed completely, and fundraising methods for cryptocurrency projects were reborn several times;

• Technical scalability. In 5 years, new projects appeared, and the old ones were so technically developed that they could interact with a large number of users. As we know, Technical Scalability Creates Social Scalability. 

In terms of the adoption of cryptocurrencies, the current number of crypto users is equivalent to  the number of Internet users in 1997. At the same time, growth in the number of cryptocurrency users outpaces the spread of the Internet. If this pace continues over the next five years, the cryptocurrency industry could boast a billion users—comparable to 2005 in the context of the spread of the Internet.

Five years is a very long time for the digital asset market. It's easier to grasp by comparing the market to what it was in 2016. Since then, a huge step has been taken toward mass adoption and new uses. As a result, in five years, cryptocurrency will make a significant leap and become part of our regular lives for billions of people, just as the internet and mobile communications once were. That is why the next five years are a great time to invest in the digital asset market.