The cryptocurrency market has evolved beyond the dominance of just one or two assets, as seen in this year’s shift toward thematic investing. In Q2 2024, meme coins, real-world assets (RWA), and artificial intelligence (AI) led in popularity, making up 35.7% of market share. In August, it was all about PolitiFi coins that spiked 782.4%, overtaking meme-inspired projects.
Since these new asset classes gain traction, it’s no longer correct to assess the overall market health by simply tracking Bitcoin or Ethereum. Instead, investors are looking for ways to measure the performance of specific sectors, which ensures a more accurate benchmark. This trend is paving the way for multi-asset indexes to become one of the fastest-growing niches in crypto.
Crypto indexes allow users to monitor different categories of digital assets and provide tailored insights into the general performance of the crypto market. They work much like traditional stock market indexes such as the S&P 500, NASDAQ, National Stock Exchange (NSE), and Nifty50, which track the performance of a group of stocks.
The decentralized nature of the crypto market makes it susceptible to inconsistent asset pricing. The same asset can be either over- or underperformed simultaneously on various exchanges due to liquidity issues or market volatility. By aggregating and weighting prices from multiple trading platforms, crypto indexes create a single and reliable data point for investors. Along with benefits like simplified investment, benchmarking, and portfolio management, this is another reason why indexes are expected to grow outside just a blue ocean in crypto.
High growth rates in the DeFi sector, to which crypto indexes belong, also contribute to the potential of this unified instrument. In June 2024, the total value locked (TVL) of all DeFi products surpassed $100 billion, marking a nearly 160% CAGR since 2023.
While the crypto space currently has limited options for investors interested in index-based strategies, the forthcoming launch of the CryptoIndex aims to address this gap. Based on a decentralized index-building protocol, it offers both novice and experienced investors an all-in-one, intuitive platform for not only tracking but also creating targeted crypto indexes.
This capability is especially useful for industry experts and influencers who can build highly customizable indexes using the platform’s broad selection of over 30,000 coins on DEXs, and share paid access to them, thus monetizing their own strategies. Notably, CryptoIndex introduces a fundraising phase before each index becomes publicly available, ensuring that only financially strong and market-relevant indexes are listed.
For those who seek ready-made instruments, the platform grants access to more than 5,000 professionally curated indexes that help users of any experience levels and risk profiles achieve specific investment goals. Beginners may find these pre-built indexes particularly useful since they serve as a springboard to crypto investing for users with little or no market knowledge.
For more seasoned Web3 investors, the platform streamlines the process of constructing and diversifying multi-asset portfolios across various niches – from meme and AI coins to RWA and DePIN – saving time and effort in portfolio management.
Unlike existing index providers that deliver limited periodic reports, CryptoIndex enables continuous, real-time visibility into all transactions. This transparency allows investors to make well-informed decisions regarding their holdings.
Moreover, CryptoIndex prioritizes user control over the indexes they purchase. Any changes made by the index creator, along with rebalancing, require collective approval by index holders through a voting process. With this governance approach, all stakeholders get involved, which makes the decision-making process fair and clear.
Leading up to its product release, CryptoIndex invites everyone, whether they are individual contributors or institutional investors, to participate in its soon-to-be-launched INDX token presale and enter the project on favorable terms.
INDX will give its holders access to all features and rewards within the Crypto DeFi index platform. For example, users will earn or pay transaction fees in INDX tokens when they create or manage indexes. On top of that, INDX holders will be able to benefit from premium features, like promoting indexes through advertising or accessing advanced performance analytics, and will have the option to stake their tokens for extra profits.
Given its mission to make crypto indexes more accessible and handle key issues, such as the lack of available index providers, CryptoIndex has all chances to grow exponentially after launch, in step with the DeFi market's expansion. As such, the INDX presale will mark an opportunity to buy the platform’s integral tokens at a discount, with the potential for them to rise in value as CryptoIndex gains more users.
As of this writing, the presale dates and terms have yet to be disclosed. For more information, follow official accounts of the CryptoIndex team on X, Telegram, and Discord.