Blockchain Foundry Inc. (CSE: BCFN)
Develops and commercializes blockchain-based business solutions and provides consulting services to corporate clients seeking to leverage blockchain technology in their businesses.
You may have heard by now, Facebook has rebranded and emerged as Meta. Aside from the question of why now, the change has many people asking, “what is the metaverse, and why should I care”?
Unfortunately, there is no Webster’s dictionary definition of the metaverse, but there are a few generally accepted descriptions of what the metaverse is – and what it could become.
Renowned venture capitalist and Metaverse Primer author Matthew Ball has described the metaverse as:
“An expansive network of persistent, real-time rendered 3D worlds and simulations that support continuity of identity, objects, history, payments, and entitlements, and can be experienced synchronously by an effectively unlimited number of users, each with an individual sense of presence.”
Facebook – or Meta – has taken a decidedly more straightforward approach in its explanation of the metaverse, describing it as “a set of virtual spaces where you can create and explore with other people who aren’t in the same physical space as you.”
This might bring to mind images from already popular online games like Roblox, Minecraft, Fortnight, and Animal Crossing; however, while entertainment and immersive experiences will undoubtedly be a fixture of the metaverse, the possibilities don’t end there.
Imagine a virtual office, somewhere minds could gather and work collaboratively on projects regardless of where an individual resides, training programs that could help onboard new employees from anywhere, or fully immersive, digital learning institutions open to students from all over the world. And that’s just the tip of the metaverse iceberg.
After dropping hints that something big was coming, Facebook officially rebranded as Meta on October 28, 2021. The universally recognized social media giant was apparently looking for a way to diversify and revamp its image. According to CEO Mark Zuckerberg:
“Right now, our brand is so tightly linked to one product that it can’t possibly represent everything that we’re doing today, let alone in the future. Over time, I hope that we are seen as a metaverse company, and I want to anchor our work and identity on what we’re building toward.”
But the question remains – why?
A recent string of bad press aside, Meta, the parent company behind Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, no longer wants to be singularly branded as a social media company. Zuckerberg has been investing billions of dollars into building the metaverse and has said in a recent interview, that’s where he sees the company’s future heading.
But the real answer could be deeper than that. Commenting on the move to Meta, Georgetown University Law and Technology Professor Anupam Chander says, “my suspicion is that this is about owning the operating system of the future, and Facebook’s experience of being an app on other people’s – rivals’ – operating systems.” Continuing, “they don’t want to be prisoners on other people’s platforms. They want others to be prisoners on their platform.”
It makes sense, right? But not so fast.
There are plenty of issues with Meta trying to be the face of the metaverse, not the least of which the pivotal role the metaverse may play in the future. Metaverse dominance aside, Meta – formally known as Facebook – has recently struggled with a series of app outages, impacting large parts of the world and leaving many without the ability to communicate. If something similar happened in an immersive 3D metaverse, the results could be disastrous.
The only thing virtual about the metaverse will be the experience. Everything else, from ownership of assets to accrued in-game items and financial transactions, will be real.
These systems will need to accommodate the data demands of millions, if not billions of people. And that is where blockchain technology and cryptocurrency factor in. The metaverse is being built on the blockchain, and crypto will be the currency.
And what would an immersive virtual reality universe be without NFTs? Non-fungible tokens will also play a key role in the metaverse, providing verifiable, indisputable ownership of characters, in-game items, and even virtual land.
Buying and selling these types of assets is a huge business. Last year, crypto kitties and crypto punks were fetching hundreds of thousands of dollars, and recently a 259-parcel of virtual land in Decentraland sold for more than $900,000
Currently, there are marketplaces where users can buy and sell NFTs. However, developers are already working on interoperable marketplaces where users can buy, sell, trade, and even edit NFTs, all from different metaverses. For example, someone might sell their virtual Decentraland plot and use the funds to buy a rare NFT avatar. Eventually, all virtual objects and intangible items in the metaverse could be expressed as NFTs, and crypto might be the exclusive currency.
Sounds exciting, but how can investors monetize or profit from the metaverse? Companies like Blockchain Foundry could be the answer. Blockchain Foundry (CSE: BCFN) is a Canadian listed company that develops and commercializes blockchain-based business solutions and provides consulting services to corporate clients seeking to incorporate blockchain technology into their businesses.
In June, Blockchain Foundry entered into a joint venture with sponsorship marketing and content creator REVXM to develop and launch a new white-label NFT platform. CollectDeFi will leverage REVXM’s strategic partnerships in the sports, music, culture and cause-related verticals and expand into the digital collectables and NFT space. Content creators will be able to use the platform to list and sell NFTS and other digital collectables.
This joint venture isn’t BCF’s only foray into the world of NFTs.
In July, the company was engaged by Gifty, a division of award-winning Evolve Media, to design and build a cryptocurrency and NFT gifting platform.
In September, the company partnered with exclusive augmented-reality NFT creator House of Kibaa (HoK) to help develop and deliver a generative art NFT drop. The newly minted Gen X NFTs will serve as collectables and provide members with exclusive benefits within the GenZero universe.
Most recently, BCF was enlisted by the Hawerchuk Family and Classic Auctions Inc. to help create a series of exclusive NFT collectables honouring the late Dale Hawerchuk, Winnipeg Jets hero and Hockey Hall of Famer. The three NFTs were the first-ever listed on the Classic Auctions platform, the world’s largest hockey auction house.
But the company’s work isn’t limited to NFTs. They offer a diversified array of products and services covering the full spectrum of cutting-edge blockchain technology, including DeFi apps, crypto payment solutions, and blockchain-based application development.
In August, BCF launched an MVP pilot of Peregrine. This unique digital asset compliance tool enables operators of security tokens, stablecoins, Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), NFTs, and other digital assets to apply custom rulesets to digital asset transactions, including overlaying traditional financial compliance requirements onto token ecosystems.
Disclaimer: The company described in this article is a customer of NAI Interactive Ltd. This material is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a recommendation or offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any securities or financial instruments, or for transactions involving any financial instrument or trading strategy.
