In 2020, the world has embraced uncertainty as the new norm. Market volatility has reached record levels, leading to a surge in trading volume and opportunities for value investors. Industries such as airlines, cruise lines, and rental cars have taken a massive hit as air travel remains down 90% and lockdown orders prevent travel.

Stocks such as Norweigan Cruise Lines (NYSE: NCLH), Spirit Airlines (NYSE: SAVE), and Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) have all experienced recent upward swings as coronavirus concerns are easing as more companies, such as Moderna, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA), come closer to developing a vaccine.

For the cryptocurrency industry, these events have supported the old theory that cryptocurrencies will become the de-facto currency as the dollar decouples, inflation increases, and people become more concerned with financial privacy.

In recent months, the cryptocurrency industry has seen positive developments with higher retail trading activity and institutional interest increasing. For example, Grayscale Investments has been very aggressive in accumulating Bitcoin, at the rate of 150% of all new Bitcoin mined since May 11. Ironic, given the fact that Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) announced on a recent investor call that cryptocurrencies are not an asset class.

What is clear is that some institutional investors are more optimistic about the role of cryptocurrencies in the global economy. For the cryptocurrency executives working tirelessly to educate investors and the public about the benefits of crypto, criticism is something that they have become accustomed to. As with any emerging technology, new can often be scary and intimidating until more solid foundations are set.

To learn more about where the economy is headed, we reached out to a handful of cryptocurrency executives that have recently been in the news.

Crypto Executive Predictions are Vastly Optimistic

1. J.D. Salbego, the CEO of Singapore-based exchange BitTok, has experienced the ups and downs of the crypto industry since 2017. In the midst of mass economic and socio-economic turmoil, he sees this as an opportunity for crypto to shine:

What is interesting and what we might see is with Beijing taking over Hong Kong, there could be an increase in Bitcoins price and usage. We've seen in the past when there is political turmoil and instability in a countrys economic future, like with Venezuela, the public has had increased Bitcoin and crypto usage because of the lack of faith in their own central banks and national currency. What we are seeing again is a completely broken banking and financial system globally. With blockchain and crypto, we will hopefully see a higher rate of usage and adoption within banking, forcing centralized institutions to become more transparent.

2. Patrick Collet, Founder and CEO of MOOVIN, a blockchain protocol that democratizes and tokenizes successfully access to data, is optimistic that the US and global economy will not see a recession based on current signs:

The present economy is facing uncertainty as confidence towards the Federal Reserve is getting thinner. I dont believe we will see a crash per say because signs arent pointing at a recession just yet. Even though the US annual GDP is looking to come 40% short, there is a strong boom in the technology and e-commerce platform sector. I believe we will see a lot of market volatility in the coming months and even though DEFI and Fintech are becoming more commonplace, adoption for blockchain tech is clearly not a conquered territory. However, these sectors will eventually be mainstream.

3. For Quincy Dagelet, CEO of Boostchain, a company that is disrupting advertising with blockchain technology, mainstream adoption could be closer than we expect:

The world we are living in with COVID-19 is really unfortunate but it opened peoples eyes and led to more digitalization. Also, people tend to have less faith in banks, the monetary system and politics. This creates the perfect gateway towards more crypto adoption.

4. Stefan Hostettler, Co-founder and CEO of Tycoon69 International, a blockchain firm based in the UAE, agrees that we should see massive disruption in the near future:

Economically, I believe that we will see stagnant and outdated industries experience a massive wave of innovation and disruption over the next few years. This happened during the last crisis and was the leading factor that drove Satoshi Nakamoto to create Bitcoin following the 2007 crash. We are dedicating our time to building out an ecosystem to modernize billion-dollar industries, such as the gift card industry.

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5. Gabriella Davis, CEO of Centric, the world's first dual-cryptocurrency payment network, agrees with the legacy cryptocurrency community that sees these events as a perfect storm that will propel cryptocurrencies:

More than ever in modern economic history we are witnessing the end of an era. Fiat currency and central banking methodology are not capable of managing highly complex marketplaces. It is time to usher in new economic and monetary innovation, the launch of Bitcoin in the wake of 2009 was the start of a wave of innovation. Moving forward, in order to drive full global adoption a vision of currencies utilizing trust-less, censorship resistant ecosystems, that help offer a reliable store of value and an incentive to join the network while simultaneously limiting industry volatility will look to be implemented.

Conclusion

One thing is certain, the world will be watching as the rest of 2020 plays out and increasingly more curious to learn more about emerging technology that can help them better control risk and their finances. When it comes to transparency, security, and access, blockchain technology provides benefits never before seen.

Disclaimer: the writer of this article is an advisor to Moovin Protocol and Boostchain, both of which have provided commentary on this article. The writer does not hold any stock in the equities mentioned.

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