Crypto is integral to the global money markets

The World Economic Forum (WEF) 2023, which was held last month in Davos, Switzerland, took place under the theme “Cooperation in a fragmented world”.
The forum proved to be a watershed for cryptocurrencies, in spite of widely held views that crypto markets were experiencing their own version of the Wall Street Crash of 1929.

To financial history buffs, it will be recalled that this Wall Street Crash is also known as the Great Crash, or the Crash of 29. It was a seismic American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. Beginning in September, it ended in mid-November, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange collapsed.
It was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, when taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its aftereffects which were felt around the world.

It even affected the global game of geopolitics as fascism reared its ugly head in Germany with Adolf Hitler rising to power on the promise of ameliorating the effects of the crash of 29 in Germany. 
It would be needless yet necessary to remind you that, with Hitler’s rise, there was a World War II which resulted in innumerable deaths along with the birth of Israel and the decolonisation of Africa.
This is why money matters matter in a world divided against itself, hence the theme of the WEF.

Such money matters are increasingly hinged upon cryptocurrencies as the WEF noted that the technology stimulating cryptocurrencies and digital assets shall go on being an “integral” part of any economy with an eye on a prosperous future.
WEF elucidated this future with regard to the crypto industry by highlighting the widespread applications of cryptography and blockchain technologies, emphasizing the value they add to the financial services sector and how that value undergirds the same.
The adoption of cryptography and blockchain technologies is akin to the world’s acceptance of cyber security and digital transformation.
“The embrace of crypto technology is equally inevitable, even if the term feels like a bad word,” said Dante Disparte, the head of global policy for Circle Internet Financial, as part of the WEF annual meeting series.

However, the crypto industry is not risk-free. This is so by its very nature, which involves the exchange and making of money, which can lead to profits and losses.
Nonetheless, the transparent nature of crypto markets and dealings related thereto gives fraudsters little wriggle room to hide.
This (re)assurance or acceptance of the risks of cryptocurrencies was a tacit acknowledgement of what has gone wrong in the crypto markets with federal law enforcement officials in New York City earlier this year accessing files within an online account controlled by Lichtenstein that contained the private keys to BTC 94,000 ($4.1b) that had been stolen from Bitfinex. The hack had taken place in 2016.
WEF accepted that 2022 was “a terrible year for crypto.” This acceptance is underlined by the substance that more than $2 trillion worth of value “vanished” from the crypto market cap, which has plunged to around $800 billion from its all-time high of around $3 trillion.

WEF also noted the collapse of FTX, once the third-largest crypto exchange in the world.
These occurrences naturally ensured user trust in the industry took a hit, while an investigative spotlight was shone on the industry by global regulators.
The fundamentals of the industry are sound and so world markets, including Uganda’s, should ready themselves for more profitable crypto markets in year to come.

The author, Mr Martin Orena is the CEO of DM Exchange, a Fintech company.    

@martinorena