I have invested in Quantstamp and think it is a terrific concept. However, this is my personal opinion and strictly not financial advice. So, please make your own research if you want to go ahead and pick up a few QSP tokens.
2017 has been the year of cryptos with the collective market cap of all cryptocurrencies rising to over 800 million USD as the year came to a close. Now, the highs of the beginning of the year have since been retraced, with the overall market cap hovering around 550 million USD as this piece is being written. However, that is not damping the enthusiasm of crypto-enthusiasts as the community continues to remain bullish on the long term prospects of the space.
One of the key developments that the rise of cryptos (Ethereum in particular) has fueled is the rising adoption of smart contracts. The smart contract enabled ERC tokens offer a novel method of fundraising to companies and at the same time, open up access to early stage investing to the common masses, which was until now the preserve of large financial institutions such as private equity firms. While this is a tremendous achievement, it is also a double edged sword. The rise in access has had the expected (and unfortunate) side effect of decreasing due diligence - on security, authenticity and business prospects. This post is not about the assessment of blockchain powered business models, that is for a later post. We will focus on security of smart contracts and this is where Quantstamp really comes in. Quantstamp is the early and decisive mover in the smart contract audit space. If Quantstamp can deliver on their promise, they can soon be the ISO equivalent of smart contracts.
Apart from identifying a real business need and putting together a really competent team to address it, Quantstamp's biggest plus is it is the closest one can call a blockchain business "recession-proof". as we see more and more blockchain-powered companies, the need for smart contract audits will continue to rise and this is not necessarily linked to whether we are in a bull run or a bear. That is investing gold dust. In the short term, Quanststamp valuation might not skyrocket as blockchain ecosystem is still in its infancy and so valuations are mainly linked to marketing noise and community rallying behind a particular token. But when the dust settles a bit and valuations start really reflecting fundamentals and on-the-ground progress, Quantstamp is likely to stand tall among the ruins (the ICO space is really about a bunch of startups and we know the success rates with startups). By putting my money on Quantstamp, I am not only putting my money on the concept and the team itself, but on the wider success/adoption of blockchain tech. If the space continues to gain traction, the Quantstamp business model validates itself, and we are looking at what can become a really successful business.
I am buckled up, and looking forward to the journey!