Cryptocurrency's Tipping Point

Over twenty years ago, author Malcolm Gladwell published his bestselling book, "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference". In the book, Gladwell defined a tipping point as “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point.”

Gladwell explored the diffusion of ideas, products, and messages, proposing that they can spread “infectiously”, like epidemics, under three conditions, or rules they are; the law of the few, the stickiness factor, and the power of context. These are the three legs of the stool.

I'm just going to put it out there and say it. Cryptocurrency has hit its tipping point, and is now ready to be accepted by the mainstream. In this blog post I'll use Gladwell's three factors to explain why I think crypto has hit its tipping point and is now ready to become part of everyday society. Behold, the few, the stickiness and the power of context illustrated.

In February of 2018 Forbes featured Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao on the cover of it's eponymous publication. Today he owns almost half of the 140 year old publication. Forbes?is a famous and long-standing magazine in the United States, established in 1917. This magazine is a familiar name in the media and business world, widely known for its ranking of the richest billionaires. world. Zhao is Gladwell's first rule embodied - he's the law of few.

Binance will contribute up to half of the total capital of 400 million USD that Forbes intends to raise to be able to conduct the merger under SPAC method to go public in 2022. Binance will thereby become one of the two largest shareholders of Forbes, holding 2 out of 9 seats on the company’s board of directors. Forbes intends to list on the New York Stock Exchange as early as the first quarter of 2022, with the trading code FRBS.

“This is the first step into a marketplace that has really high potential when it comes to adoption of Web 3.0 based tools,” said CEO, Changpeng Zhao “As Web3 and blockchain technology evolve and the crypto sector matures, media will play an important role in educating and increasing consumer awareness. We will support Forbes’ digitization initiatives as they evolve into their next-generation information platform.” he continued.

This weekend for the first time the Super Bowl matchup will feature commercials from Crypto related companies. Thats right, the company that bought the naming rights to the Staples Center, Crypto.com, along with a few of their peers in the industry are running commercials during the Super Bowl. This is the sticky part if you haven't guessed that yet.

“Cryptocurrency is becoming more mainstream every day,” said Tim Calkins, clinical professor of marketing at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in an interview with MarketWatch. Crypto.com could air its future-forward "Fortune Favors The Brave" commercial, starring Matt Damon. FTX is also on a Super Bowl spending spree with a multi-million dollar budget for big game. I think that the "Crypto Bowl" is the beginning of a blockchain advertising bonanza. Aimed directly at everyday middle Americans.

Super Bowl ads are ridiculously expensive, with figures up to $7 million for a 30-second slot this year, due to their broad reach. Last year’s Super Bowl ads generated over 6.3 billion TV impressions, 26 million online views and 64 billion social impressions.We won’t get any relief after the Super Bowl ends, either. the crypto’s industry push is just getting started.

They want you on their exchange, platform, or service, most investors don't hop from one exchange to the other. They usually stick where they started so the push is on to get you to try their brand. The game is being played at SoFi stadium for God's sake what more proof do you need? To me it's easy to see the signs of what Gladwell called an epidemic. We are at the tipping point. The “stickiness factor” in the message that makes it more contagious, or memorable can also be very powerful. Small nuances can make a difference in how a message sticks with us. Fortune Favors The Brave is a sticky message for the Super Bowl.

On to the third critical aspect of the tipping point stool - context. The Power of Context refers to the environment or historical moment in which the trend is introduced. If the context is not right, it is not likely that tipping point will take place. What does this mean? Our current context is this, it's the year of the tiger, it's a new lunar year. Although the virus persists, it seems like most people are burned out from exhaustion, and ready to move on with life. The Omicron variant seems to be receding and mask mandates are being lifted - we are starting to reemerge after more than two years of a crisis.

Globally, I think we are ready to move on from the events of the past few years and start anew. Many have lost businesses, their homes and loved ones, with 5.79 million deaths worldwide from the pandemic. I think people are finding the metaverse appealing because reality is not that great right now. So alternate universes, and virtual worlds are attractive.

But I don't think we should fear this tipping point, instead we need to embrace it. We need to allow it to grow and flourish as it blooms. We will move, literally - from one "epidemic" to another. The first being the global pandemic, the second being the crypto gold rush epidemic that is starting to happen. How many are gobbling up cryptocurrency thinking the ads will drive up trading volume and pricing on Super Bowl Sunday. There has never been a more perfect storm to bring about a sweeping change in the financial services landscape.

I hope the Feds are ready to embrace it, regulate it and harness its power. We are headed into an era of abundance. A creative economy of epidemic proportions, being accelerated by a worldwide pandemic. I'd say the handwriting is on the wall - I'm reading it quite clearly.

The message Gladwell imparts is essentially a positive one—in a confusing and often counterintuitive world, “tipping points are a reaffirmation of the potential for change and the power of intelligent action”. This is an idea in which all of us can take comfort. Embrace It!

Oh BTW, I'm still looking for a gig in this abundant new economy, if anyone has anything ...