2021 was a highlight year for the cryptocurrency industry, with rapid growth noted not just in the asset market, but also in the infrastructure surrounding it. Big 4 accounting firm KPMG, which itself revealed[1] holding Bitcoin and Ethereum on its Canada arm’s balance sheet earlier, has now highlighted in a report[2] that investments in the crypto and blockchain sector were upwards of $30 billion in 2021.
This was more than five times the $5.5 billion in investment seen in 2020.
While the crypto-market maturing in the North American region during this time has been a bullish development, KPMG’s “Pulse of Fintech 2021” report shed light on other regions that could be dominating the space soon. More interestingly, much of this upward push in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and Asia-Pacific (ASPAC) regions has been due to regulatory headwinds, the report noted.
Positive regulations stimulating growth
Cryptocurrency interest in the EMEA region has been accelerating in 2021. In fact, the report singled out jurisdictions like Germany and Portugal that have “clear regulations.” This was highlighted in Coinbase choosing Germany as its European headquarters last year, becoming the first company to get crypto-custody approval from Germany’s Federal Financial Supervisory Authority.
Going forward, the next big thing in the FinTech space for this region would be both B2B payments and cryptocurrencies as its erstwhile focal direct-to-consumer space has now reached maturity. Other trends to look for in the present year could be a growth in allocation to the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, along with a “stronger push for the development of a common regulatory framework for crypto.”
China Ban or Boon?
Similar growth in the digital asset market due to regulatory moves was also seen in the ASPAC region. The report noted that China’s blanket
