Time to jump on the cryptocurrency rollercoaster
Cryptocurrency has taken us on a rollercoaster ride since its inception, but as things start to stabilise, we are set to see huge short term and long term impacts on the hospitality industry, which should be taken note of right now. Although 95% of what’s currently being mooted is unlikely to progress, with only 5% of NFT (non-fungible token) concepts coming to fruition, the development of cryptocurrency is very collaborative amongst users, creators, and prosumers. Cryptocurrency and NFTs have the potential to revolutionise the way we do business, generally for the better.
In the short term, there are some serious challenges at bay. Ethereum (the most trusted source for NFT creation), for instance, isn’t sustainable – a core issue facing the hospitality industry. It costs an extortionate $20-$40 per NFT in gas fees, and this creation process isn’t set to change any time soon. It will take at least two years for the NFT creation process to evolve, allowing more people to mint them sustainably, and more restaurants to incorporate them within their business strategies. FlyFish Club in New York is a great example of where things could be, having pioneered tokenisation of their digital membership.
Education around cryptocurrency and NFTs is also a barrier to entry – many people, including hospitality professionals, don’t understand them and don’t yet want to. Like any form of innovation, it’s complicated to onboard new users and facilitators. NFTs are also risky, currently unregulated assets, with the likes of Bitcoin and Ethereum plunging steadily in value since the beginning of the year. But don’t start thinking it’s on a helter skelter – cryptocurrency will evolve for everyone’s benefit, particularly the hospitality industry.
Insight suggests that in the long term, the development of cryptocurrency will support the exponential rise of the metaverse and supporting tech in tandem, branching past specific NFTs to a new hybrid hospitality reality. What will this look like? Think Deliveroo in the metaverse, purely digital wallets and NFT fan clubs. Steps have already been taken in this direction by the likes of McDonalds, who have made trademark applications in the metaverse, and Chipotle Mexican Grill who have created a virtual restaurant on Roblox. This will evolve even further however into a pure intersection of both the virtual (metaverse) and physical (AR / VR goggle technology), which will always be required within the hospitality industry to keep consumers in touch with reality.
In the long term, the majority of restaurants will also expect a hyper-stable cryptocurrency, such as a ‘digital Great British pound’, also known as a ‘stable coin’. This will negate the currently unregulated and unstable value elements of NFTs as we know them today. The development of cryptocurrency and an evolved metaverse is also intrinsically community driven; prosumers can shape digitally influenced hospitality for good. It’s important to remember that whilst change can be scary, NFTs, cryptocurrency and the metaverse aren’t going away. Hospitality professionals and customers ought to jump on the rollercoaster ride now, and be part of the innovation vanguard.