Cryptocurrency is falling hard but given the development framework and foundation that coders and technology architects have established is going to be useful in the next few years. Specifically, we predict that mobile wallets are going to be a game changer in the next few years.
Why do we say this?
Given that we are progressing towards a cashless economy, with credit/debit cards fast becoming ancient, people are now more inclined to use state-of-the-art technology given it is fast and gets the job done in a seamless fashion. In 2015, Google launched ‘G Pay’ a one-stop shop NFC-based paying platform for physical and digital transactions. This garnered massive praise from early adopters as the technology enabled users to make quick payments without hassle.
To add more context, Amazon is investing heavily in cashierless stores where people can directly scan and auto-pay for their groceries. Although there is still a tangible update to be received from the Retail giant, we can expect a breakthrough soon. Who knows, they might as well utilize blockchain technology to tap into owners of cryptocurrency.
In 2009, cryptocurrency started a new wave of financial exchanges and transactions that took place entirely on a distributed system with no third party or bank involved. Bitcoin was the first to arrive on the scene and we saw the rapid proliferation it underwent over the years, as it peaked to $20,000 in 2017 before crashing hard.
Enter Ethereum
It goes without saying that Ethereum is the second most popular cryptocurrency that people know about, but it is unique in some sense. Driven by a completely different purpose, the technology was the first ‘open’ source platform where developers were able to bootstrap projects and applications that were ready to disrupt fintech industry. What makes Ethereum different to Bitcoin are the following:
Ethereum faster transaction time (15 seconds average) compared to Bitcoin (10 mins average) therefore making Ethereum best for quick and easy payments
About 94/100 of the best-rated blockchain projects have been launched on the Ethereum Network, integrating other popular cryptocurrencies such as Litecoin and Ripple.
Ethereum has a built-in decentralization mechanism due to which users who buy digital items/tokens have complete ownership of it without the risk of getting censored or black-listed by any government agency or as such.
Ethereum is able to cater to the scalability problem of DApps (Distributed Apps) by constructing a side-chain that runs concurrently, without compromising on security.
The Ethereum currency recorded its 1 millionth transaction early this January and it has only grown ever since.
People have the option of opting for a hot wallet — where the person stores the keys online which are accessible remotely from anywhere. Edge Ethereum wallet is a good example of a hot wallet that gives you flexibility to access your Ethereum right from your smartphone.
Then there is a cold wallet — where keys are kept offline and can be used whenever deciding to go online, making it a more secure option.
A befitting example of where one can use Ethereum coins is to digitally crowdsource a potential Kickstarter project. You can create a virtually signed contract that will hold a contributor’s money until a fixed date or if the goal is reached. Whether the project fails or succeeds, the funds will either be released to the project owners or safely returned back to the contributors. All of this can be achieved using Ethereum blockchain’s decentralized, trustless platform. This very concept can be applied to multiple other use-cases in the spaces of E-Commerce, mobile banking, gaming, and social marketplaces.
Sure, 2018 was not really the best year for cryptocurrency but the foundation has been laid and there are mistakes that future developers and tech evangelists can learn from. Technology is only to head in the forward direction as we are seeing more people designing fully usable and integrable products for consumers to carry out their daily tasks.
