Corporate Adoption is Happening Behind the Scenes

Microsoft began showing interest in virtual coins as early as 2014. It alluded to the possibility of incorporating BTC, ETH, and other currencies into its software. Today, the company has made significant investments in the industry. It helped raise $450 million for blockchain startup ConsenSys in March 2022. In November of the same year, it also pumped $14.8 million into Wemade, a Korea-based blockchain gaming services company. Aside from that, the multinational has collaborated with Ankr, a decentralized blockchain infrastructure provider, to offer node hosting on the Microsoft Azure Marketplace. This will provide low-latency blockchain connections for Web3 projects, allowing developers to build scalable blockchain solutions.

In 2021, Nike, a multinational footwear designer, manufacturer, and marketer, acquired RTFKT, a Web3 company. Later that year, it announced SWOOSH, a non-fungible token (NFT) apparel platform. SWOOSH intends to sell digital Nike garments and shoes to Metaverse users. A variety of apparel will be available, ranging from limited editions to reasonably priced assets. The company has invited designers to showcase their work, collaborate on product development, and earn royalties. Athletes who partner with Nike will also have storefronts on the platform.

In 2022, the world’s largest asset manager made headlines when it hinted that two of its funds could now invest in bitcoin’s future. It officially announced the formation of a private spot bitcoin trust in August of the same year. Furthermore, it collaborated with Coinbase Prime, the company’s corporate arm, to provide trading, custody, prime brokerage, and reporting services. Larry Fink, the CEO, also hinted at the possibility of the company becoming more bullish on the sector. The company recently released its FY2022 results, which show $8.59 trillion in Assets Under Management.

One of the world’s largest payment networks, has joined the crypto wave. It has partnered with digital wallet fintech IMMERSVE to promote the widespread use of crypto wallets. They want to build a centralized and decentralized financial system that allows businesses to accept both fiat and crypto payments seamlessly. IMMERSVE’s issuing-as-a-service platform will assist Web3 and DeFi users in transacting anywhere Mastercard is accepted due to this collaboration.

Visa is already ahead of its competitors with its crypto-linked card. In the first quarter of fiscal year 2022, the company announced that customers transacted over $2.5 billion with the card. Recently, it started expanding from the US into new markets. Through an agreement that makes Wires a member of Visa in the UK and the Asia Pacific region, Visa is ready to move into more than 40 countries.

Formerly Facebook, Meta has shown aggressive moves in the crypto territory, including re-branding to align with its new blockchain-based goals. In 2022, the firm invested about $13.7 billion in Reality Labs, its metaverse platform. Although it made an operating loss, the platform was the most significant revenue earner in the sector, generating over $2.2 billion. Late 2022, the company announced its plans to launch an Instagram NFTs marketplace through a partnership with Polygon.

Rumors that Amazon would add crypto payment options to its marketplace gained force in 2021. This was after the company started hiring digital coin and blockchain experts. There were also reports that the enterprise planned to launch its own token in 2022. Amazon seems to have gotten a clear direction on how it wants to get involved in the blockchain industry. It recently partnered with Ava Labs in a plan to see Amazon Web Services support Avalanche’s dApps ecosystem.

International coffee house Starbucks first made its entry into the blockchain sector in 2016. It partnered with iPayYou’s BTC wallet to enable clients to make payments using virtual coins. iPayYou offered BitcoinDirect to Starbucks, an automated funds processor to handle the company’s transactions. In September 2022, Starbucks made another headline after unveiling a unique loyalty program, Odyssey. The program enables members to earn and purchase exclusive NFTs, which unlock new immersive experiences.

Chinese tech company behind messaging app WeChat is among the latest corporations investing in blockchain. The company announced a partnership with MultiversX in February 2023. MultiversX is a decentralized blockchain network known for its highly scalable and secure environment that fosters the development of applications for users and enterprises. Tencent Global will utilize this network to develop Web3 and metaverse products.

This is one of the multinationals that have relentlessly shown strong support for the blockchain industry. It announced a $35 million injection in Latam-audience metaverse projects in 2022. This would be followed closely by the launch of the Samsung Bitcoin Futures EFTs under its asset-management arm in January 2023.