Prepare for the Next Crypto Bull Run

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• Another crypto bull run is not guaranteed, but it is very likely.
• I will split my recommendations into two parts. The first part is all about smart contract platforms, either L0, L1, or L2. So these will be the tokens of general platforms that have a chance of becoming popular in a way similar to Ethereum.
• Second part is about more specialized applications of blockchain technologies. We saw in 2021–22 bull run how NFTs, Metaverse, and finally blockchain gaming tokens all had their turns in the spotlight.

PART 1 — SMART CONTRACT PLATFORMS:

The elephant in the room here is Ethereum, the most popular platform for dapps. Is it going to be the only winner, is it going to share the top spot with other platforms, or it it going to be outshone by a more successful competitor?

Ethereum is very likely going to remain in the spotlight (how many Ethereum killers have died already?), but it needs a proper scaling solution. The most promising one right now is zero knowledge rollups, and the prominent one here is Starknet. The token has not been released yet, so it is a good idea to participate in the DeFi and NFTs space on Starknet to secure an airdrop.

Now if Ethereum either shares the spotlight or loses to the myriad of competitors, then the nature of the competition needs to be assessed. Two big philosophies are at war here: sharded solutions vs monolithic solutions.

The sharded solution of choice is Polkadot. unlike its competitor Cosmos, Polkadot ensures the security of its parachains, and it is already host to innovative blockchain technologies like decentralized IDs, decentralized social media, robotics…

For monolithic solutions, I see three serious competitors:

• Solana : It boomed last bull market, had some headwinds with FTX collapse, but it already secured a thriving developer community, and they have many innovative solutions in the pipeline for scaling and other planned utilities.
• Flow : It is NFT specialized, and is hosting collections related to prominent IPs: NBA, La Liga, UFC, NFL, Star Wars, Masters of the Universe…
• Sui: The new comer that uses Move as a programming language, which is tailor made for blockchain developing, and has new approaches for scaling.

PART 2 — SPECIALIZED APPLICATIONS:

• Metaverse: I have big hopes for Lamina 1, an upcoming blockchain envisioned with the help of Neal Stephenson, the Sci Fi writer who came up with the word metaverse (in his novel Snowcrash) that will focus on open metaverses.
• Gaming: Oasys is a new Japanese blockchain focused on gaming. It has partnerships with the likes of Ubisoft, Sega, Softbank, Netmarble, Square Enix, Bandai Namco…who are all running staking pools.
• Liquid Staking: Bifrost is a parachain on Polkadot that allows liquid staking of Ethereum, Filecoin, and Polkadot. Worth taking a look at.