Fortune 500 And Bitcoin: Top Public Companies Embrace Crypto

The global cryptocurrency payments could grow at 18.5% annually until 2030, making the crypto market irresistible for even the largest companies.

Earlier this year, Coinbase reported 83% of the surveyed Fortune 500 executives either planned or had blockchain initiatives on the way. While this outlook has been improving over the years, over 90% agree that policymakers should develop a new regulatory framework instead of enforcing one unsuitable for this purpose.

Still, opportunities usually can't wait for the regulators, and some of the largest companies, such as Alphabet Inc.‘s GOOGLGOOGL Google and Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN, formed dedicated teams to leverage their size and experience to thrive in Web3.

Speaking at the Benzinga Future of Digital Assets conference, Richard Widmann, head of Web3 strategy at Google Cloud, noted:

"Google is more than Search. The company is rooted in its deep developer community and leveraging those roots to put its fingerprint on Web3 development. A lot of the same developer community that helped fuel the SaaS boom more than a decade ago is acting as the soil for the next wave of innovation."

He stated Google is helping Web 3 companies by offering technical solutions, such as managed node services for Ethereum developers.

"There is almost a reset in the industry, but the technology underneath it is still valid," said Amazon's John Liu, speaking on the topic of "Unlocking Crypto Adoption for Institutions and the Future of Finance."

As a Head of Product of Amazon's Managed Blockchain (AMB), Liu works on developing a fully managed service designed to help build resilient Web3 applications. Amazon offers full integration with its Web Services, scalable and without the specialized blockchain infrastructure needed.

While Google and Amazon look to support the ecosystem, NVIDIA NVDA, which got fined by the SEC for not disclosing its crypto mining revenues, looks less enthusiastic.

"It doesn't bring anything useful for societ," Nvidia's Chief Technical Officer Michael Kagan said regarding cryptocurrencies, despite the company enjoying the benefits of the crypto-mining craze in the late 2010s. Even before the AI-craze, the NVDA's chart looked like a hyped cryptocurrency, as the stock rose 1,500% between 2016 and 2023.

Yet, seemingly every day, some of the largest global companies find a new way to leverage these technologies. Citigroup Inc C recently launched Citi Token Services, a blockchain solution for institutional clients.

By integrating tokenized deposits and smart contracts into the bank's global network, these services have many applications, including continuous cross-border payments, liquidity management and automated trade finance solutions.

Through Citi's private blockchain networks, clients such as a leading shipping provider Maersk can automatically access these services to pay the vessel transit fees. As key shipping bottlenecks like the Panama Canal struggle with draught-caused restrictions, these solutions could give Maersk a competitive advantage.

Mass adoption of such a solution could speed up global shipping and result in a more seamless flow of goods and services for everyone.

Now Read: Why Traditional Banks Could Play A Major Role In Crypto Mass Adoption.

Photo: Unsplash