Year of the Dragon celebration! China leads the crypto world, and a bull feast is about to unfold
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Year of the Dragon celebration! China leads the crypto world, and a bull feast is about to unfold
Three Predictions for the Development Trends of China's Crypto Industry in the Year of the Dragon 2024
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsSource: Decrypt
Translation: BitpushNews Yanan
Writing prediction pieces is always a challenging mental exercise. Last year I made three bold predictions for the Year of the Tiger, all of which turned out to be wildly off the mark. Specifically:
I predicted that China would give birth to the next breakout crypto game. In reality, most of the gaming world was busy launching tokens, with few truly compelling games emerging. Still, I remain confident in the potential of the Chinese market—they’ve proven time and again their mastery at creating addictive gameplay experiences.
I expected Chinese tech giants to actively enter the NFT space. Instead, when the market turned sour, these companies pulled back. That said, a number of Chinese celebrities continued launching NFTs as personal passion projects, while some local governments embraced NFTs to stimulate creativity in the cultural industries.
I thought we’d see a surge of DAOs within the Chinese crypto community. Instead, what emerged were mostly airdrop farming studios—highly sophisticated at anti-cheating measures. While some DAOs are still active, drafting DAO manifestos no longer carries the same appeal it once did.
Predictions are indeed difficult, because we often base them on the latest—and slightly optimistic—data points in an unpredictable market. But that doesn’t mean making predictions isn’t fun.
Without further ado, here are my bold predictions for the Chinese crypto landscape in the Year of the Dragon!
1. The Chinese community will play an increasingly leading role in crypto
In crypto, the Chinese community has long been a force to be reckoned with. They've not only coined new terms and narratives but also influenced market movements. This influence may grow even stronger in the future.
Did you know? The term "KOL" (Key Opinion Leader) originated in China. It’s a quintessential example of “Chinglish,” born simply because Chinese speakers found the word “influencer” hard to pronounce.
Last year, Bitcoin Ordinals and Bitcoin Layer 2 technologies caught most industry insiders by surprise. These new waves not only drove up token prices but also attracted fresh builders and capital, collectively helping make Bitcoin great again.
“BRC20 and Ordi captured the attention of the Chinese community from day one,” 0XWizard (a pseudonym), a prominent figure in the Bitcoin space, told me. “Chinese users are more open to new tokens and asset standards—as long as they can generate returns. Technology isn’t the priority—profit is. If it makes money, Chinese users will try anything.”
Following Bitcoin’s resurgence came ERC-404, a semi-fungible yet entirely unofficial token standard. Both were created by Chinese developers. While many criticize the lack of formal recognition, I see this as a reflection of the Chinese community’s innovative, rule-breaking spirit—they’ll create their own standards if needed!
More importantly, these Chinese players have mastered the art of storytelling—whether it's Bitcoin or Ponzi-like token standards, they know how to ride the wave. I predict that in 2024, the Chinese community will launch even more novel and unique experiments. And I’d bet money on this: some of these innovations will eventually be adopted and popularized across the broader crypto world.
2. Everything goes on-chain—even in China
Yes, we’re moving toward an on-chain world.
Starting with centralized exchanges, all three major platforms are now building their own Web3 ecosystems: wallets, native protocols, and decentralized applications.
For example, OKX launched its multi-chain wallet in 2023—the first non-custodial wallet to support Bitcoin Ordinals. The exchange also partnered with Polygon to roll out X1, a new Layer 2 chain. Whether willingly or not, Chinese entrepreneurs are investing in infrastructure and migrating existing users onto the blockchain.
Quest platforms are another favorite among Chinese users. Galxe alone has driven more on-chain transactions than all other websites combined. While some tasks do attract professional airdrop farmers, overall they emphasize rewarding actual blockchain usage.
Finally, and perhaps most significantly, Ethereum development benefits greatly from Chinese researchers, especially in zero-knowledge proofs and account abstraction. Teams like Scroll and Taiko are working hand-in-hand with the Ethereum Foundation to scale Ethereum. Soul Wallet and Blocto are pushing innovation in smart contract wallets.
3. Crypto exodus from the Middle Kingdom
Several events last year left a deep impression on me. One day, I received a Telegram message from a Chinese friend—a major crypto figure I had profiled back in 2020. He asked me to take down the article because he didn’t want to attract scrutiny from Chinese regulators. At the time, authorities were cracking down hard on several crypto founders and investors, so the request felt urgent.
This founder wanted to disappear from the internet.
We took down the piece, but I was deeply saddened. This man was one of crypto’s early builders, having developed an excellent DeFi product. Yet now he had to erase his digital footprint just to keep working in the industry. For founders of small startups, anonymity might be manageable—but for those aiming to build products that impact millions, vanishing isn’t a viable option.
Of course, alternative lifestyles exist. Singapore initially attracted wealthy crypto figures, then a wave of developers (until the collapse of Three Arrows Capital). In 2022, Hong Kong emerged as a new crypto hub after the government clearly signaled its support for Web3.
Thailand has become a haven for young, stylish crypto idealists. In Dan Wang’s 2023 newsletter, he described a group of young crypto enthusiasts enjoying delicious two-dollar meals while diving deep into philosophical discussions about nationhood, geopolitics, happiness, and psychedelics.
Here in Dubai, where I live, the crypto boom continues unabated. Most major Chinese crypto exchanges have relocated their global headquarters to the UAE. An increasing number of crypto natives now view Dubai as a potential home (yes, the tax rate is zero!).
Unlike during the pandemic, when going overseas was often forced, today more crypto professionals are choosing to live abroad voluntarily. With high geographic mobility across the industry, people can easily spend a few months here, then move elsewhere for a while.
I predict that in 2024, these dispersed digital nomad communities will grow larger, more inclusive, and more influential. I hope they’ll form new configurations centered around ideology, beliefs, hobbies, culture, and cuisine. Perhaps the idea of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) will make a comeback. Maybe the next breakout crypto game will emerge from such a group. Or perhaps it’ll simply be about friendships forged on the road.
The ripple effect of a decentralized Chinese community is that it pushes us toward greater diversity. By living in each other’s countries, we further dissolve the boundaries between East and West.
The more I reflect on these predictions, the more I realize they stem from my deep optimism about community evolution. As the crypto industry enters an on-chain bull market, the Chinese community will accelerate its growth. After all, in Chinese, the character for “dragon”—龙—is pronounced “lóng,” which sounds just like the English word “long” (as in bullish market sentiment). Let’s wish for a booming market (Long the market), and a thriving Chinese community (Long the Chinese community)!
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