Web3 & Industries: What’s New, What’s Changing

Web3 isn’t just crypto; it's increasingly influencing traditional industries from finance to content, identity, gaming, and more. Let’s walk through the latest developments and what they mean.

Recent Highlights

1. Nigeria Growing as a Web3 Developer HubNigeria has been named Africa’s fastest-growing Web3 developer ecosystem. It now contributes about 4% of all new Web3 developers globally, the most of any African country. Last year alone, Nigeria saw a 28% year-on-year jump in developers. The report points out strong grassroots activity, innovation, and increasing adoption in both financial and public sectors.

2. Web3 Infrastructure Still Drawing Investor InterestIn Africa, while many Web3 finance and DeFi projects saw declining momentum, infrastructure projects (payment processors, cross-chain / interoperability tools, basic blockchain plumbing) are still getting funded. For example, projects like Zone and Hyperbridge raised millions, showing that investor focus is shifting toward the backbone of Web3 rather than speculative applications.

3. OTT / Media Platform Moves into Web3ULLU, an Indian over-the-top (OTT) content platform, launched UlluCoin a utility token meant to enhance user engagement, unlock premium content, facilitate redemptions, and reward fans. This is part of a trend where content platforms see Web3 tools (tokens, rewards, layering of blockchain) as ways to differentiate and deepen user loyalty.

4. Forex + Payments Meeting Web3A player called Cregis, which builds blockchain infrastructure, is pushing into the foreign exchange (forex) industry via a “Crypto Payment Engine.” It presented this solution at Forex Expo Dubai 2025. The goal is to help traditional forex/financial enterprises integrate Web3 elements: faster payments, more transparency, cross-border efficiency.

5. Cybersecurity for Web3 Still Critical & GrowingSpanish startup Dedge Security raised €4 million in seed funding to build security tools tailored for Web3 protecting from code level to node level, and integrating into dev workflows (CI/CD). As more industries adopt Web3, security becomes a bottleneck so tools that assure trust, visibility, and protection are becoming essential.

Trends & Where Things Seem to Be Headed

• Layered Infrastructure is Key: instead of flashy front-end dApps, there’s more investment in tools that help with interoperability, cross-chain execution, security, and scaling.

• More Web3 in Traditional Sectors: content/media, payments/forex, identity/authentication, plus entertainment and gaming are all layering Web3 features (tokens, rewards, ownership).

• Hybrid Models: Many firms aren’t going fully decentralized; they’re adopting hybrid models some centralized control + some blockchain components (for rewards, record-keeping, user identity, etc.).

• Regulation & Trust are Growing Concerns: As adoption increases in regulated sectors (forex, media, financial services), questions of compliance, legal recognition, and fraud/security risks are getting more attention.

What Industries to Watch More Closely

• Media / Streaming / OTT – as with ULLU, many platforms see content + token rewards as a rising model.

• Financial Services / Payments & Forex – use of Web3 to reduce friction, especially cross-border and settlement times.

• Gaming / Entertainment – NFTs, play-to-earn, fan tokens etc., but quality of user experience & real utility will separate winners.

• Security / Developer Tools – as Web3 scales, security, audit tools, monitoring, dev frameworks will be in demand.

• Identity & Digital Reputation – projects aiming to offer verifiable identity, digital twins, or Web3 identity tools (alone or hybrid) will gain more traction.

What This Means Going Forward

• For companies considering Web3, adopting early is good but it's smart to begin with concrete use cases (e.g. reward programs, content unlocks, identity verification) rather than jumping into full decentralization without infrastructure or legal clarity.

• For investors, infrastructure, tools, and projects that bridge Web3 + tradtech (traditional tech) seem likelier to provide stable returns than speculative projects.

• For developers & talent in places like Nigeria and elsewhere in Africa, this is a strong moment: the opportunity is growing, and if you build skills in Web3 infrastructure, security, interoperability, you might ride the wave.