Web3 Ecosystem: The Evolution of Investment from Dream to Reality

Financing and elections in the Web3 space share similarities, both requiring the establishment of a network of relationships. During the ICO boom in 2017, many project parties naively believed that simply developing a good product and promoting it on forums would lead to success. However, the reality is that one needs to connect with important figures in the industry, seek institutional endorsements, and hire market makers, among other things.

Although this emerging industry claims to reshape the trading system, it is not immune to factional disputes. Early rumors suggested that if a project chose to launch on a certain exchange, it might affect its listing opportunities on other platforms. However, as the industry has matured, this situation has eased, and all parties have begun to set aside their prejudices and cooperate in order to compete for limited liquidity.

People often label projects with various tags, such as market capitalization, industry category, and investors. These tags help quickly identify project characteristics and form initial impressions. For example, projects supported by well-known investment institutions are often considered high-quality projects. Behind these tags lies brand premium, creating a space for imagination for the project.

Meme propagation also follows a similar logic, relying on well-known figures or IPs as starting points, gradually spreading through the efforts of various levels of disseminators. As more and more people discuss and profit from it, more people will be attracted to join.

Web3 is like a dream-making space where participants are all looking for the next opportunity. Although everyone understands the importance of value investing, they still hope to achieve excess returns through speculation. This leads to a recurring cycle: from initial skepticism to small attempts, then to large-scale entry, and finally possibly incurring heavy losses.

What we see as opportunities may just be illusions carefully crafted by dreamers, while the wealth effect serves as bait to attract continuous participation. In this field filled with opportunities and risks, rational thinking and prudent decision-making are particularly important.