Visualizing the new crypto economy

Following our big news that Abra users around the world will now have unprecedented access to invest in the cryptocurrency economy, we partnered with Visual Capitalist again to create an infographic and new taxonomy to help investors make sense of the emerging crypto use cases. 

Bitcoin was first created by Satoshi Nakamoto so that people could use the internet to safely and privately exchange value with others without the need for a centralized third-party or intermediary.

Today, ten years later, the economy inspired by Bitcoin is still growing — and using the foundations of decentralization, peer-to-peer, and open-source as a means to solve some of the problems of interacting and transacting on the internet.

Below is a list of problems that cryptocurrencies are trying to address and a visualization of a new taxonomy that shows which projects are working to solve these use cases:

Payments

Many cryptocurrency projects are creating new forms of internet-native payment systems that will be faster and more efficient than traditional payment systems, especially for sending large sums of money, micro-payments, or cross-border payments.

Store of value

Another use case for some cryptocurrencies is as a digital store of value, which means people can more easily store, transfer, and exchange value over the internet.

Programmable money

Some protocol-level cryptocurrencies can be considered programmable money, which means that computer code contracts can be written and executed to perform a number of financial functions.

Privacy

Some cryptocurrencies are created with privacy in mind. They are designed to protect the details and integrity of financial transactions, with the goal of increasing freedom in the digital age.

Digital ownership

The monetization structure of the current internet makes it difficult for content producers to maintain control over their original work, or to make money from their content without selling advertisements. New cryptocurrency-based schemes are aiming to change that, and in the process make it easier for content creators and consumers to transact without advertisers getting involved.

Decentralized utilities

Decentralized utilities and applications are using cryptocurrency technology to build new kinds of products and services that will allow people to interact without having to go through a centralized institution such as a bank or payment provider. Decentralized apps are being developed for all kinds of things from finance and communication to gaming and gambling.

Alternative finance

One of the major use cases for cryptocurrencies is as alternative financial models that will open up access to credit and banking products and services around the world. Leveraging internet-scale and lower costs, alternative finance will be more customizable and easy-to-use.

Stablecoins

Stablecoins — or cryptocurrencies that have values that are pegged to other assets such as the US dollar or other currencies — are designed to provide the features of cryptocurrencies with the steady value of traditional assets. Stablecoins are often viewed as easy on-ramps and off-ramps between the digital and physical worlds.

Check out the full graphic

Here’s the full “Visualizing the new cryptocurrency ecosystem” from the Visual Capitalist.

Written by

Daniel McGlynn

Daniel is a writer at Abra.