Indeed, Coinbase recently published its fourth annual report. This one concerns the adoption of blockchain by Fortune 500 companies. Small businesses that quickly adopt this technology are also mentioned.
However, the United States could well lose its leadership to China in exploiting these new opportunities.
General Enthusiasm and a Race for Innovation
The number of Fortune magazine-ranked companies with cryptocurrency, blockchain or Web3 projects increased by 39% over the past year. These have reached a new record early in 2024.
These initiatives have an average budget of $9.5 million and most are already well underway. It is interesting to note that 56% of Fortune 500 executives report that their companies are already working on blockchain projects.
Moreover, one of the main drivers of this adoption is the search for new ways to represent and exchange real-world assets on the blockchain.
More than $63 billion worth of Bitcoins are now held by exchange-traded funds. The value of tokenized U.S. Treasury bonds has skyrocketed by 1,000% to reach $1.29 billion since early 2023.
Blockchain technology also appeals to small businesses. 68% of them show a strong interest, particularly for cryptocurrency payments. Gaming, healthcare, and food services are also involved.
The United States Lags Behind China
Despite all this, the United States risks missing out on this potential growth. Indeed, China overtook the United States in 2020 for the number of Fortune 500 headquarters. The Chinese giant now holds 142 compared to 136 for the United States.
Indeed, the main obstacle for American companies is not regulation, but rather the shortage of blockchain talent. Only 26% of cryptocurrency developers are based in the United States. However, 79% of executives from large companies want partnerships with Americans.
Moreover, 72% of them believe that a digital U.S. dollar is essential to global competitiveness.
