The cryptocurrency industry has grown from a small pool of developers to a community generating a trillion-dollar economy lately. They have become increasingly popular over the past few years after the introduction of Bitcoin. After the financial crisis in 2008, the emergence of cryptocurrencies has provided an alternative view on how to build trust in the financial industry. When we look at the market in 2010, Bitcoin was the only crypto that traded in just a few cents. Later, other currencies also entered the market, and their prices started to rise and fall along with Bitcoin's. However, 2018 saw a gradual growth where the total market cap reached $820 billion in January, but ended up crashing later. Despite this crash, the market has been witnessing steady growth since then.
After a bull run in 2021, many retail and institutional investors started to enter the market, driving the growth of crypto investments in India with seasoned investors. Retail investors or everyday investors started to trust cryptocurrencies seeing their potential in the digital era.
With this growing momentum, a CFA Institute Investor Trust study has listed India as one of the top markets for trust in financial services. The belief in retail investors is undoubtedly due to the increasing optimism around crypto as an emerging asset class.
Cryptocurrencies have now slowly started to emerge as a new investment class in India, as today's youth are also looking at crypto as a means to achieve financial freedom. These digital assets surely have value in the future, but how can they transform the country?
Here is how the Indian crypto market is expected to shape up to be by 2047:
Crypto banks would emerge
According to a United Nations Trade and Development (UNTAD) report in 2021, more than seven percent of Indians owned digital assets in the form of cryptos. As per the report, every fourteenth Indian invested in the new age asset despite the pandemic. India ranked in the sixth position in terms of crypto adoption alongside Singapore and the United States.
With awareness and adoption being increased at this pace, most people would own their cryptos by 2047. As of now, even though there are thousands of cryptocurrencies in the market, we still know and hold only a handful of them, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, which have widespread appeal.
With most people holding their own crypto assets, crypto banks would emerge. The coming years would be critical for the whole of the banking sector, and crypto banks might emerge as licenced financial institutions.
This scenario means that the bank could hold a rupee and crypto. Even though these kinds of banks might sound new today, they can let customers buy, sell, and hold crypto alongside a regular bank account.
Crypto to be part of a portfolio of all investors
As the financial industry evolves each year, new investors will start to consider the ramifications of investing in cryptos. Being a nascent market now, volatility is likely, but the volatility may slowly decrease with more and more people coming on to crypto.
Every investor might hold crypto as part of their portfolios, making this asset class for everyone.
More transparent services
Security has been a primary concern for many these days. Cryptocurrencies being built on a blockchain infrastructure can offer a safe and secure environment for making transactions.
Cryptos built on blockchain technology use a cryptographic hash so that each asset can be securely stored on the blockchain and tracked back while changing hands. Through such an environment, transparency can be prioritised, minimising the risk of fraud.
Friendly crypto regulations will boost the economy
After introducing the crypto bill this year, India happens to be one of the most notable emerging economies in the world.
Even though it could be challenging to achieve the dream of a $5 trillion economy by 2024-25 in the current economic performance, crypto adoption could be a vital step toward Digital India.
With many institutional investors around the globe entering the crypto market, this can also boost companies around India to look towards crypto. The way people started making digital payments lately, in the coming years, people are simply going to make payments in crypto across the globe with awareness around the crypto gaining momentum.
According to KuCoin's report, despite the government levying a 30 percent tax on crypto income, the Indian crypto market is expected to reach $241 million by 2030. The survey revealed that India's nearly 115 million crypto investors either held or traded crypto in the past six months despite the downward trend.
The report also indicates that the population below 30 recognises crypto for its long-term value. With more crypto-friendly regulations, new businesses, entrepreneurs, startups, products, and services will become a market.
Let us suppose that the government of India can provide people access to invest in cryptocurrency through a regulated channel. In that case, it is possible to boost the purchasing power of the 1.3 billion population.
The high adoption of crypto assets in lower and middle-income nations relies on crypto to send remittances and preserve their savings in times of fiat currency volatility. So, the coming years will see solutions in the crypto industry emerge, which can also increase adoption among high and low-income countries.
Many countries have been trying to boost these kinds of innovations to transform their infrastructure in this digital world. With vast technical talent, India can emerge as a global hub of cryptos and blockchain technology in the coming years. As the digital economy grows, cryptos will play a significant role in what makes up the future monetary system.
(The author is the CEO and co-founder of Mudrex, a global crypto investing company.)
Disclaimer: The opinions, beliefs, and views expressed by the various authors and forum participants on this website are personal. Crypto products and NFTs are unregulated and can be highly risky. There may be no regulatory recourse for any loss from such transactions. Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is subject to market risks. Readers are advised to seek expert advice and read offer document(s) along with related important literature on the subject carefully before making any kind of investment whatsoever. Cryptocurrency market predictions are speculative and any investment made shall be at the sole cost and risk of the readers.