Blast Founder Highlights Lack of Innovation in Current Crypto Cycle

Tieshun Roquerre, also known as Pacman, the founder of Blast, stated that the current crypto cycle lacks significant fundamental innovation to drive new adoption.

> “A lot of this cycle has been driven by ETFs, by pressure, so this cycle hasn’t really played out like previous cycles, because it hasn’t really been a real cycle in the sense of fundamental technology changes,” Pacman mentioned during a virtual Q&A at the Foresight 2024 event in Hong Kong.

Pacman pointed out that past cycles featured crucial innovations such as initial coin offerings, the launch of Uniswap, and the creation of NFTs. These pivotal changes often facilitate a fresh rotation of capital towards major cryptocurrencies and emerging asset classes like NFTs.

To rejuvenate the struggling NFT market, Pacman emphasized the necessity of introducing a new twist on existing NFTs, akin to how NFTs modified fungible tokens.

Additionally, he announced that Blur, the NFT marketplace he launched in 2022, is gearing up for its “biggest project” to date, noting that he would reveal more details as the launch approaches.

As for Blast, the Ethereum Layer 2 network that entered early access in November 2023, it currently boasts a total value locked of $840.3 million, a decline from its peak of $2.3 billion in June, based on DeFiLlama data. Blur’s total value locked stands at $65.26 million. After its June airdrop, Blur received criticism for not adequately supporting its native projects, leading to its memecoin Pacmoon transitioning to the Solana blockchain.

Disclaimer: Larry Cermak, CEO of The Block, is an angel investor in Blast.